Douglass Seaton, Ideas and Styles in the Western Musical Tradition, 3rd ed.

  • Angela Mariani Texas Tech University

Abstract

Ideas and Styles in the Western Musical Tradition can be used effectively as a quick but substantive tour through western musical history and context, suitable for undergraduates but also sufficiently erudite for graduate courses. The history of music is presented as arising from historical, political, and cultural influences; we are invited to explore ideas such as "Humanism and Music," "The Reformation in Music," and "Rationalism and its Impact on Music," and musical concepts are presented in specific historical and cultural contexts. Ideas and Styles does not replace the standard histories but it is more comprehensive than generic. It is a stimulating explication of ideas and the way that they inform musical process, presented through the frame of chronological history. Also included are "Suggestions for Further Reading" keyed to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and theoretical studies, and a particularly useful chart correlating the contents of the book with a number of well-known recorded anthologies. Access to a Companion Website is available as a free supplement, as are the expected Instructors' Materials (sample syllabi, learning objectives, PowerPoint slides and quizzes, etc).


Author Biography

Angela Mariani, Texas Tech University
Angela Mariani is an Assistant Professor of Musicology at Texas Tech University's School of Music, where she also directs the Texas Tech Early Music Ensemble. A graduate of Indiana University's Early Music Institute, she has also recorded and performed extensively with Altramar medieval music ensemble, and since 1991 has hosted the nationally-syndicated early music program Harmonia.  She is currently working on a book on the pedagogy of improvisation in medieval music performance practice.
Published
2010-07-16
Section
Reviews