Customer Reviews

Musical Instruments: An Illustrated History

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4 star:		(1)
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As a professional musician specializing in Early Music, this is a book which I use frequently for lectures/demos about instruments of the Renaissance and Baroque (though it includes modern Western musical instruments as well). Since I borrow it from the library to use as a visual aid, I have not read it extensively, so I will reserve my comments for the most part to the illustrations.

That is where this book is exceptional:

The instruments exemplified in this book indicate very well researched work on the part of the author. It's pretty comprehensive and inclusive.

The photographed instruments, some of which are originals belonging to noble collections, are outstanding in craftsmanship and ornamenting alike. The paintings clearly show the instruments themselves, the ways they are played and how they function; they also are lovely art works in and of themselves. Every illustration/photo in this book is apparently selected for its outstanding beauty, and almost every specimen exhibited is of museum-quality caliber: In this regard, I have not seen any other book quite like it.

What little bits I read in the written contents of the book were also very well researched, though I also do remember reading just a few mistakes. Some of these errors may well be the product of information available to us at the time of the penning of this book: More and more information is being uncovered in recent decades, during which ticket sales to Early Music concerts have increased exponentially and researchers have done some very detailed/extensive work since the 1970s, when this book was printed.

Were it not for the few mistakes I read I wouldn't even hesitate to give this book a five-star rating. Because of those few errors (and at least in my best recollection, the rest appeared to be very well researched as said), I am giving it the four star rating.

But as a pictorial resource introducing young and adult minds alike to instruments of Renaissance and Baroque Europe, and Western musical instruments right up through present time, plus just a few images of instruments from ancient cultures and ethnic origins, this is an outstandingly beautiful book.