The Essential Canon of Classical Music

Rating:
Summary: The best book of its kind
Review: A brilliant and fascinating book. This is a comprehensive yet manageable-size history of classical music from medieval times through the present. There is a section for each era with biographies of the major composers, each section prefaced by an excellent framing summary of the general history and cultural context of the period. The knowledge shown by the author, not only on the wide range of music but also on the general historical and cultural aspects, is truly awesome. And unlike many such books, this one pulls no punches. If a composer was an S.O.B., the book tells you about that. If he murdered people in his spare time (e.g. Gesualdo), the book tells you about that.

What I find most fascinating and special about this book is the persistent focus on correlating the composers' achievements with their relationship histories. Again and again, mostly almost in passing, composers' productivity (or lack thereof) is expressed in the context of relationships, marriages, separations, or widowhoods. I am not aware of any other source with such an emphasis. To me, it adds enormously to the narratives and it is the most significant aspect of the book.

Each section is broken down into two portions: First, a succession of chapters on each of the most important composers, then a series of shorter write-ups on "other" composers of the period. The author does a great job of this. A key aspect of such a book is the relative amount of space each thing is given, totally aside from the actual content; this is perhaps the main factor that conveys a thing's importance and interest. Think about it: When we pick up a book like this, what's the first thing we do? Usually, we thumb through it to see just basically what's in there, rather than exactly what it says. And isn't this true regardless of one's level? Thus, if such a book is well done, a novice can thumb through it, and within a few minutes he can know the major composers and roughly where they stand, just from who's in there and how much space they get. And I believe it would be hard to do a better job of this than Mr. Dubal did. We can always quibble, and indeed there was one particular instance where I wondered why a composer wasn't included: Orlando Gibbons. Obviously not a major thing -- I mention it only to show how deep you might have to dig to find a quibble.

Actually, one quibble that might be more substantial.......Unless I'm missing something, no female composers at all are featured. I don't know enough to be sure if this is a significant omission, but it would appear to be. Cecile Chaminade, Amy Beach, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich are examples of composers who might have been included.

The author doesn't hesitate to reveal his biases, although it's not clear if he recognizes them as such. For example, in the Borodin chapter, he says it's "unfortunate" that Borodin's themes were used in "Kismet." But, rip-offs like that were how many of us got introduced to classical music! (Me for example.) And how about this quote from the chapter on Modernism: "In the last 50 years, the young have had an unprecedented amount of money to spend, and they have been taught to spend it on bad music....." Many of us probably agree with that, but it certainly shows a bias.

An interesting additional wrinkle (easily overlooked!) is that the illustrations of the composers were done by the author himself.

Most highly recommended for people of all levels.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent resource
Review: Dubal is first and foremost a good writer. His biographical sketches of the major composers are short - about 3-5 pages each - but are compelling, elegantly written and packed with really useful information. He details composers' personal lives, historical contexts, relationships between composers and critical views (and popular views) of their works over time. After each biographical sketch he lists composer's major works, with a short discussion of the importance & influence of each piece as well as his critical opinion.

Reading Dubal's book has enriched my appreciation of some really great music. It's also prompted me to try composers I'd barely heard of before. After reading Dubal's chapter on Paganini I immediately got into my car, headed for the music store & picked up a copy of his '24 Caprices for Violin'. And I'm so glad I did. I now have a huge "must-buy" list thanks to this book.

I read this book along with Phil Goulding's "The 50 Greatest Composers and their 1000 Greatest Works". Both are worthwhile. Goulding's book is entertaining, but his ranking system & his concept of a "Starter Kit" for each composer are rather silly. Goulding's book is fun, especially for the absolute beginner. But for me, Dubal wins because of the quality of his writing and because he lists more major works to listen to and goes into detail describing each work. This is a book I'll come back to again and again.

Criticisms: His section on the Baroque is smaller than I would like. I also wish he'd added a discussion of musical forms & went into a bit more technical detail about each musical work. But I suppose that's for another book. Dubal has included a lot of substantial and enjoyable detail into this book , and I'm satisfied with it enough to think it merits five stars.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent resource
Review: Dubal is first and foremost a good writer. His biographical sketches of the major composers are short - about 3-5 pages each - but are compelling, elegantly written and packed with really useful information. He details composers' personal lives, historical contexts, relationships between composers and critical views (and popular views) of their works over time. After each biographical sketch he lists composer's major works, with a short discussion of the importance & influence of each piece as well as his critical opinion.

Reading Dubal's book has enriched my appreciation of some really great music. It's also prompted me to try composers I'd barely heard of before. After reading Dubal's chapter on Paganini I immediately got into my car, headed for the music store & picked up a copy of his '24 Caprices for Violin'. And I'm so glad I did. I now have a huge "must-buy" list thanks to this book.

I read this book along with Phil Goulding's "The 50 Greatest Composers and their 1000 Greatest Works". Both are worthwhile. Goulding's book is entertaining, but his ranking system & his concept of a "Starter Kit" for each composer are rather silly. Goulding's book is fun, especially for the absolute beginner. But for me, Dubal wins because of the quality of his writing and because he lists more major works to listen to and goes into detail describing each work. This is a book I'll come back to again and again.

Criticisms: His section on the Baroque is smaller than I would like. I also wish he'd added a discussion of musical forms & went into a bit more technical detail about each musical work. But I suppose that's for another book. Dubal has included a lot of substantial and enjoyable detail into this book , and I'm satisfied with it enough to think it merits five stars.

Rating:
Summary: One of the BEST Overviews of Classical Music
Review: I like Dubal's book a lot. Why? Because it is good writing and I can actually understand what he is saying, unlike some other books on classical music. There are many music gurus with tons of knowledgeable, but precious few that can communicate it in an interesting and understandable way to the average or newer listener. Herein lies the strength of Dubal's clear, inviting and "dense" writing style. By dense I mean he uses fewer, but well-chosen words as compared to endless and needlessly complex jargon that only impresses other adademians.

Also, like a good story teller, he writes so that his ideas have excellent continuity and flow with one idea leading naturally into another and building towards the overall picture. An example of this is his EXCELLENT description of the history and structural unfolding of the Sonata Form - something that I never quite grasped fully until I read his four-pages on it. Yes, the basic idea we can quickly get, but the way he presented it in the excellent primer on "The Classical Era" finally gave me the more complete appreciation of it and what to look for in a work. For me, the book was worth it for this chapter alone.

His chronoligical essays on the major composers are well written and probably the most interesting I have read. Again, dense and flowing. I greatly enjoyed these and learned new details I had never heard in spite of the relatively short sections. He also covers an impressive list of the "minor" composers.

Wisely, Dubal does not try to make this volume "all things" and rightfully stears away from being "Dubal's Punguin Guide" by not comparing the various choices of available recordings. Also, he does not overly commentate on each work and movements as this would take another volume but gives brief yet interesting mini-summaries of the major works as well as recommended recordings. One little detail I liked in his listings of important works is that he lists the DATE written next to each so you can see the progression of all works on a given genre over time. Just one aspect of many which shows a well thought-out book that is enjoyable to read.

Last, a nice added bonus is the fairly meaty glossary of terms in the Appendix - something every beginner needs to grasp the concepts. It is enough to save you from buying a separate music dictionary.



Rating:
Summary: Excellent review of classical music history!
Review: I've been looking for a book like this for a long time. David Dubal writes a very readable and very interesting picture of a wide range of composers who those interested in classical music should know. The book includes a biographical sketch of the composer and a list of important works that define the composer's place in history. This book works equally well as classical music textbook and biography, and fills an important niche in the marketplace.

If there is a down side to the book, it is in its desire to do too much. Dubal includes a few select CDs he recommends. As I've learned in my travels, a lot of classical labels make you pay through the nose and that can be discouraging to someone on a budget. The truth is, there are some really good budget lines (like Naxos) out there that can put classical music into the hands of almost anybody who wants a good CD, without sacrificing quality one iota. Don't be bound by his selections--explore! But do read the book. It'll be worth your time.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent review of classical music history!
Review: I've been looking for a book like this for a long time. David Dubal writes a very readable and very interesting picture of a wide range of composers who those interested in classical music should know. The book includes a biographical sketch of the composer and a list of important works that define the composer's place in history. This book works equally well as classical music textbook and biography, and fills an important niche in the marketplace.

If there is a down side to the book, it is in its desire to do too much. Dubal includes a few select CDs he recommends. As I've learned in my travels, a lot of classical labels make you pay through the nose and that can be discouraging to someone on a budget. The truth is, there are some really good budget lines (like Naxos) out there that can put classical music into the hands of almost anybody who wants a good CD, without sacrificing quality one iota. Don't be bound by his selections--explore! But do read the book. It'll be worth your time.

Rating:
Summary: Good biography of composers, recommended recordings suspect
Review: In general I find this to be a very good book. The writing is lucid, to the point, and free of prejudice. However, in some instances where the facts regarding a composer's life is unclear, Dubal presents the version that he believes is true as fact. For example, Dubal says that Tchaikovsky died of cholera after drinking unboiled water. In at least one other instance (the liner notes to a Tchaikovsky CD I own but forgot which one) the author claims that Tchaikovsky was forced to consume poison after the authorities found that he was a homosexual. And to call Schumann an "important" symphonist is laughable. Everyone knows as great as Schumann is at writing for the piano, he was equally inept at writing for the orchestra.

Another problem I have is Dubal's selection of recommended recordings. He recommends anything and everything that Solti recorded. I know Solti is a great conductor but come on. There are some absolute classics of the repertoire that he leaves out such as C. Kleiber's recordings of Beethoven's 5th and Brahms 4th.

Rating:
Summary: The ideal book for another crack at Music Appreciation
Review: My college Music Appreciation class became something of a joke when I discovered it was easier to pass the exam by NOT listening to the music at the listening lab. After all, a piano concerto is not the same thing as an operatic duet or a symphony piece. So while I have always enjoyed classical music, I could never really appreciate it in any meaningful way. So David Dubal's "The Essential Canon of Classical Music" is perfect for somebody like me who wants to know more about all those classical CDs in my collection without getting into major and minor keys and other fun stuff. For example, even I recognize "La Mareillaise" representing the French in Tchiakovsky's "Overture 1812," but find it interesting to learn that several folk tales such as "God Preserves Thy People" are used to represent the Russians. True, Dubal talks rather generally about specific works, but that is exactly what I need to advance to the next level.

The Canon is divided into five ages: (I) The Medieval, Renaissance, and Elizabethan; (II) Baroque; (III) Classicism; (IV) Romantic and (V) Modern. For each Dubal first presents the defining composers of the age: Handel, Bach and Scarlatti for Baroque; Gluck, Hayden, Mozart and Beethoven for Classicism. For the last two ages things get more complex, but what the division between the main composers and the "others" is a question of degree: pages detailing specific works versus a paragraph or two. Again, this is quite useful for someone like me who is interested in not only learning more about what I already have but who is also open to suggestions as to what composer and/or works I should track down next. "The Essential Canon of Classical Music" is both informative and engaging. It sits on the shelf next to my classical musical collection and I do not grab something to listen to without taking it along to see what new things I can learn from Dubal.

Rating:
Summary: The ideal book for another crack at Music Appreciation
Review: My college Music Appreciation class became something of a joke when I discovered it was easier to pass the exam by NOT listening to the music at the listening lab. After all, a piano concerto is not the same thing as an operatic duet or a symphony piece. So while I have always enjoyed classical music, I could never really appreciate it in any meaningful way. So David Dubal's "The Essential Canon of Classical Music" is perfect for somebody like me who wants to know more about all those classical CDs in my collection without getting into major and minor keys and other fun stuff. For example, even I recognize "La Mareillaise" representing the French in Tchiakovsky's "Overture 1812," but find it interesting to learn that several folk tales such as "God Preserves Thy People" are used to represent the Russians. True, Dubal talks rather generally about specific works, but that is exactly what I need to advance to the next level.

The Canon is divided into five ages: (I) The Medieval, Renaissance, and Elizabethan; (II) Baroque; (III) Classicism; (IV) Romantic and (V) Modern. For each Dubal first presents the defining composers of the age: Handel, Bach and Scarlatti for Baroque; Gluck, Hayden, Mozart and Beethoven for Classicism. For the last two ages things get more complex, but what the division between the main composers and the "others" is a question of degree: pages detailing specific works versus a paragraph or two. Again, this is quite useful for someone like me who is interested in not only learning more about what I already have but who is also open to suggestions as to what composer and/or works I should track down next. "The Essential Canon of Classical Music" is both informative and engaging. It sits on the shelf next to my classical musical collection and I do not grab something to listen to without taking it along to see what new things I can learn from Dubal.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent discussions of the masters with brief discography
Review: This book focuses on the key composers of each age. Dubal spends a lot of time on the artistic development of each composer. He does a good job describing the emotional impact of each of their major works and often provides a quotation from another composer who was impacted by that work. Finally, he provides a list of recommended CDs to get a beginner started in building a collection.

One drawback--he spends almost no time analyzing the key elements of a particular composition or how the composer accomplished his purpose with his music. Also, his prose, while beautiful, might be a bit flowery.