A Brief History of Music in Western Culture

by Bonds, Mark Evan, PhD

• ISBN13: 9780131838604
• ISBN10: 0131838601
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-12-24
• Publisher: Pearson

Summary

Structured for a one- or two- semester course in music history, this text is a condensed version of Mark Evan Bonds' A History of Music in Western Culture. A Brief History of Music in Western Culture: bull; bull;Focuses squarely on the music, tying names, dates and concepts to the study of a carefully selected repertory of works. bull;Tells the story of Western music in a clear and compelling narrative to help students gain a broad understanding of the nature of music, its role in society, and the ways in which it has changed over time. bull;Challenges readers to think critically about music using primary sources to demonstrate that the raw materials of history are often open to conflicting interpretations, and that these conflicts can open new perspectives. bull;Integrates the textual narrative with the Anthology of Scores; every work in the Anthology is discussed in the text. Supporting Material bull; bull;Anthology of Scores Volume I: Antiquity through the Baroque Era (0-13-014357-X) bull;Anthology of Scores Volume II: The Classical Era through the Twentieth Century (0-13-014359-6) bull;Recorded Anthology (6 Compact Discs) Volume I (0-13-014352-9) bull;Recorded Anthology (6 Compact Discs) Volume II (0-13-014353-7) bull;Bonus Disc (0-13-118294-3) bull;A History of Music in Western Culture Companion Website trade; (http://www.prenhall.com/bonds) Contact your local Prentice Hall representative for more information about packaging these items with the text.

Author Biography

Mark Evan Bonds teaches music history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He holds degrees from Duke University (B.A.), Christian-Albrechts-Universitat Kiel (M.A.), and Harvard University (Ph.D.). His publications include Wordless Rhetoric: Musical Form and the Metaphor of the Oration (1991), After Beethoven: Imperatives of Symphonic Originality (1996), and A History of Music in Western Culture (2003). He has also edited Beethoven Forum and written numerous essays on the music of Haydn and Mozart.

Table of Contents

Prologue: Antiquity

Music in the Biblical World

Ancient Greece

Music in the Roman Empire

The Musical Legacies of Antiquity

The Medieval Era

Prelude to Part I

Plainchant and Secular Monophony

The Emergence of Plainchant

The Elements of Plainchant

The Expansion of Plainchant

Secular Monophony

Polyphony to 1300

Organum

Clausula

Motet

Conductus

Mensural Notation

Music in the 14th Century

France: The Ars Nova

Italy: The Trecento

England

Instrumental Music

Music of the Renaissance

Prelude to Part II

Renaissance Humanism

The Protestant Reformation

Renaissance Painting and Sculpture

Music in Renaissance Society

The Emergence of Renaissance Style

Consonance and Dissonance: Trusting the Ear

Sonority: The Contenance Angloise

Texture: Pervading Imitation

Josquin's Ave Maria...virgo serena and the Style of the Renaissance

The Genres of Renaissance Music, 1420-1520

Sacred Vocal Music

Secular Vocal Music

Instrumental Music

Music in the 16th Century

Secular Vocal Music

Sacred Vocal Music

Instrumental Music in the 16th Century

Mannerism

The Baroque Era

Prelude to Part III

War, Revolution, and Colonial Expansion

The Scientific Revolution

The Musical Baroque

The New Practice

Searching for the Secrets of Ancient Greek Music

The Florentine Camerata

The Seconda Prattica

Music in the Baroque Era: A Stylistic Overview

Vocal Music, 1600-1650

Secular Song

Opera

Sacred Music

Vocal Music, 1600-1750

Opera

Sacred Music

Conceptions of the Compositional Process

Instrumental Music, 1650-1750

Instruments of the Baroque Era

Instrumental Genres of the Baroque Era

The Classical Era

Prelude to Part IV

The Age of Enlightenment

War and Revolution

The Industrial Revolution

Music in Enlightenment Society

The Art of the Natural

Music and the Idea of Nature

Music in the Classical Era: A Stylistic Overview

Style and Form in the Mid-18th Century

Instrumental Music in the Classical Era

The Language of Instrumental Music

Sonata

String Quartet

Cyclical Coherence

The Symphony

Concerto

Vocal Music in the Classical Era

The Rise of Opera Buffa

Opera Wars

Gluck and the Reform of Opera

Mozart and the Synthesis of Operatic Styles

Sacred Music

Song

The 19th Century

Prelude to Part V

Progres

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

This book is an abridged and slightly altered edition ofA History of Music in Western Culture(Prentice Hall, 2003). Like the original text,A Brief History of Music in Western Culturerests on the premise that the history of music is best conveyed by focusing on a carefully selected repertory of musical works. Once familiar with a representative body of music, students can better grasp the requisite names, dates, and concepts of music history, including an understanding of the evolution of musical styles and music's changing uses within the Western tradition. Even more importantly, students will gain a sound basis from which to explore other musical works and repertories. A Brief History of Music in Western Culturebuilds its narrative around the core repertory represented in the accompanying two-volumeAnthology of Scoresand corresponding set of twelve compact disks. This text is not an encyclopedia. My goal, rather, has been to help students gain a broad understanding of the nature of music, its role in society, and the ways in which these have changed over time. Finally,A Brief History of Music in Western Cultureseeks to challenge students to think critically about its subject. The history of music is too often presented (and learned) as one long series of indisputable facts. I have tried to integrate into this text enough documents--primary sources--to demonstrate that the raw materials of history are often open to conflicting interpretations. Indeed, the most interesting historical issues tend to be precisely those about which experts disagree. FEATURES OF THE TEXT The narrative ofA Brief History of Music in Western Cultureis closely integrated with the accompanying Anthology o f Scores. Every work in the anthology gets a discussion in the text, called out with a note in the margin, and the anthology is ordered to follow the sequence in which those discussions occur within the text. Following a Prologue on the music of classical Antiquity, the text is divided into six parts, each corresponding to a major era in music history: Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, 19th century, and 20th century. The text concludes with a brief epilogue on music today. Each part begins with apreludethat summarizes the historical and social background of each era. The first chapter in each part provides an overview of the major stylistic characteristics and theoretical concerns of the music of the era. Parts 4 (Classical period), 5 (19th century), and 6 (20th century) conclude with a brief survey of all the major composers of their respective eras. The text also offers a variety of features and pedagogical tools: The opening pages of each prelude include acomparative timelinethat lists major musical events side by side with other significant historical events. Anoutlineat the beginning of each chapter gives students an overview of the content of the chapter. Key termsare highlighted in each chapter and defined in aglossaryat the end of the book. Significant composers are featured incomposer profilesthat include key biographical information and a survey of principal works. Primary evidenceboxes contain excerpts from relevant contemporary documents, exposing students to some of the raw materials of music history. Focusboxes highlight important information that expands on aspects of the core narrative. Numerousexamples, tables, and diagramshelp students grasp key points and visualize musical structures. The last chapter in each part concludes with a set ofdiscussion questionsdesigned to stimulate reflection on broad issues in music history. Finally, the detailed captions to the illustrations inA Brief History of Music in Western Culturereveal the wealth of information--about musi