What to Listen for in Music

by Aaron Copland

Overview

Now in trade paperback: “The definitive guide to musical enjoyment” (Forum).

In this fascinating analysis of how to listen to both contemporary and classical music analytically, eminent American composer Aaron Copland offers provocative suggestions that will bring readers a deeper appreciation of the most viscerally rewarding of all art forms.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780451226402
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	03/03/2009
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Aaron Copland’s well-known and highly regarded compositions, performed and recorded extensively throughout the world, include the Pulitzer Prize–winning ballet Appalachian Spring, as well as Billy the Kid, Rodeo, Lincoln Portrait, and the film scores of Our Town and The Heiress. On being awarded a Congressional Gold Medal in 1986, Copland was praised for his “uniquely American music that reflects the very soul and experience of our people.” During his career, Copland taught composition at Harvard and the Berkshire Music Center, lectured all over the United States, and wrote Our New Music and Music and Imagination. He died in 1990.

Table of Contents

What to Listen for in MusicAaron Copland: America's Musical Voice
Foreword
Introduction
Author's Note for the 1957 Edition
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. Preliminaries
2. How We Listen
3. The Creative Process in Music
4. The Four Elements of Music—I. Rhythm
5. The Four Elements of Music—II. Melody
6. The Four Elements of Music—III. Harmony
7. The Four Elements of Music—IV. Tone Color
8. Musical Texture
9. Musical Structure
10. Fundamental Forms—I. Sectional Form
11. Fundamental Forms—II. Variation Form
12. Fundamental Forms—III. Fugal Form
13. Fundamental Forms—IV. Sonata Form
14. Fundamental Forms—V. Free Forms
15. Opera and Music Drama
16. Contemporary Music
17. Film Music
18. From Composer to Interpreter to Listener
Epilogue: "Since Then"
Appendix I
Appendix II
Appendix III
Suggested Bibliography for Further Reading
Index