Classical Music: Third Ear: The Essential Listening Companion (Paperback)

by Morin A (Author) "A friend of the young Mozart, a colleague of Johann Christian Bach in London, a virtuoso on the viola da gamba (for which he wrote..." (more)
Key Phrases: other orchestral music, chamber music recordings, complete opera recordings, Harmonia Mundi, New York, Marco Polo (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
This excellent guide to classical music discography ranges over the entire history of recorded sound, with 50-plus contributors covering some 500 composers. In contrast to most guides of its kind, headnote information (e.g., label, disc numbers, performers, and the like) is presented in the text in summary form only, with boldface alerting readers to particular performers and recommended recordings. Usually, a composer entry begins with a short assessment of the composer's work and historical significance, followed by a discussion of the recordings. Besides the main 1100-page composer section, editor Morin, a contributor to several prestigious musical publications, allotted sections to genres and instruments/artists. The main competition to this work is The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs, out in a new edition this year. Both are mammoth works, but some minor composers/works in one are not in the other (and vice versa). For certain major composers, Penguin is superior, but in general the nod goes to the newcomer, especially for its coverage of "genre" music not included in Penguin (the film music of Korngold, for example, is not mentioned in Penguin) and more complete entries on important minor composers (such as Viotti). Ideally, libraries should own both books to cover the classical scene fully. (The "About the Book" section of Classical Music states that, like Penguin, it will be updated periodically.) This fascinating and readable survey is recommended for all libraries.
Bruce R. Schueneman, Texas A&M Univ. Lib., Kingsville
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description
Ranging from Gregorian chant to Philip Glass, this well-balanced guide to historical and comtemporary classical music examines major works by 500 composers worldwide. It focuses on exemplary recordings of symphonies, operas, concertos, choral pieces, chamber music, piano pieces and other works performed by an internatinoal spectrum of premier conductors, musicians and vocalists. Incisive, often anecdotal critiques define the distinctive style and interpretation of thousands of selected works and recordings. Composers profiled and reviewed include: Bach, Beethoven, Bernstein, Brahms, Chopin, Copland, Czerny, Debussy, Gershwin, Gilbert & Sullivan, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Prokofieff, Puccini, Reich, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Varse, Wagner and hundreds of others.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 1200 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books (July 10, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879306386
• ISBN-13: 978-0879306380
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #71,412 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great book!, February 18, 2003

By	W. Hill (Newark, DE USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a wonderful guide to the sometimes confusing world of classical CDs. It may not supplant the Penguin Guide as the gold-standard, but it is a very illuminating supplement to it, and may be a first choice if you live in the USA. Penguin tends to have a British bias in many of their reviews, while this book comes from a more American perspective -- if you have ever bought a CD because Penguin gave it three stars, and then listened to it and wondered what all the fuss was about, this book may be for you. The reviews are entertaining to read, brief yet informative and often witty, and clearly organized to help you find what you want. The book does not cover quite the range of recordings that Penguin does, but it comes close, and certainly covers far, far more than either the Grammophone Good CD or Rough Guide books do. This is definitely the book to get if you want a second opinion after the Penguin Guide, and would make a highly satisfactory guide on its own. Very highly recommended!!!!!

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A most interesting guide - but inconsistent, March 29, 2005

By	Alan Lekan (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a fascinating buying guide to classical music recordings with many positive attributes. It is full of interesting historical context of the composers and their works and fascinating performer trivia, making it quite entertaining and educational in addition to comparing the many recording choices. Compared to Penguin or Gramophone, it gives MUCH MORE in-depth backgroung on each work's history and significance. Also, there is a lack of any "British bias" (since published in USA) that some cite with Gramophone or Penguin (both UK published). Case in point: American pianist, Garrick Ohlsson's superb eight volumes of Chopin on the Arabesque label. Third Ear is the only guide to extensively review each of Ohlsson's Arabesque CD's while there is not one mention in the 2003 Penguin or Gramophone. Bias? Perhaps more likely the Brits are just not familiar with all the musicians "across the pond." Its really impossible for any one guide to be the "end-all" guide.

A notable and unique feature of The Third Ear Guide is the many pages of great biographies of the FAMOUS MUSICIANS by instrument in the back (pianists, violinists, violists, cellists, wind players, percussionists, vocalists etc). So, here you can find legends from Rubinstein, Horowitz, Pires, Perahia, Grumiaux, Oistrakh, Casels, Starker, Bain, Holliger, Graham, Pavoratti and many other admired musicians/vocalists thoughout the past century. In addition to some curious history and career milestones of these well-loved performers, The Third Ear Guide also cites some of their better recordings - a real valuable feature I found.

However, this guide waxes hot and cold depending on the composer/genre. For example, in the listings of available performances for a huge category like Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas, there are SEVERAL entire pages covering nearly two dozen musicians who have recorded those works with compelling insights into their styles, historic performances and careers. Really great stuff for the conoisseur! But, in other categories it is a different story. Most frustrating to some is that in many cases, obvious top recordings and major performers are not mentioned, leaving the reader with an incomplete information. But, the bottom line is that no one guide is the end-all resource, and serious collectors will have this guide along with the Gramophone and Penguin Guides as each really has something valuable and often unique to contribute to the study of the finest recordings.

On the style side, the commentary is not dry and academic but full of human interest and spicy opinions - revealing "nuggets" of fascinating information for the music you most love. Additionally, the editors are not always prim-and-proper, saying only positive things (like Penguin Guide) but actually give critical and insightful comments which truly helps one sort out the pack. In this respect, the Third Ear Guide is the probably the most interesting to read compared to the others. So, this guide is much more than just a guide to look up ratings - it is a fascinating journey into classical music, its vast repertoire and its performers. If you are a serious collector, multiple guides area always the best way to go to get a wide variety of opinion. If you really can only pick one guide, most people would go with legendary Penguin Guide. But, my second guide would definately be Third Ear (over Gramophone) as it often lists recordings suprisingly not listed in Penguin. Also, it is just plain fun and fascinating to read at random.

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable reading...A very good buy., January 27, 2003

By	Jeffrey Lee (Asheville area, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I return to this book three times as often as The Penguin Guide because it usually makes for more interesting reading and seems to offer more substance in the reviewers' comments regarding individual performances. Though, of course, we're dealing frequently with personal biases and favorites, I don't really detect the sort of ethnocentric tendency that fairly commonly characterizes the exclusively British Penguin Guide. For example, by my perception, its persistent inclination to overrate conductors like Colin Davis and especially Simon Rattle. However, I do have a few complaints about the Morin edited work here under consideration. Unconscionably, Bruckner is given a mere one and a half pages. Almost equally absurd are the thirty pages given to the vocal music of Handel. And, I'm not at all pleased with the somewhat less than satisfying treatment given by the reviewer of Brahms' big works. On the positive side, however, composers like Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Mahler are given deservedly ample and fine coverage, with terribly fascinating and probing analyses concerning comparative evaluations. I say go for it ! It's well worth its price.