The Encyclopedia of American Music

Résumé du livre

This encyclopedia encompasses America's composers and music, from the Thanksgiving hymns of the Pilgrims to the utterances of the Moog synthesizer. All aspects of the rich and varied musical history of America are covered chronologically, biographically, and topically: folk music, pop standards, symphonies, choral music, show tunes, film scores, jazz, church hymns, musical comedy, gospel, blues, disco, and hard rock. Divided into seven major periods of American music, the book offers short introductory essays to each section, highlighting the character of an era's musical activity, the lives and work of some of its key composers, and the sociocultural events which helped shape its musical profile. The introductory sections are followed by individual entries (1,200 in all) listing alphabetically the composers and their works, organizations, musical forms and styles, and terminology used at the time.