The "World of Music" offers a diverse and entertaining recordings package and an approach that emphasizes the progressive development of listening skills. Students are introduced to music elements through simpler music styles and familiar recordings and gradually build up to the most rigorous forms of Western music. The structure of the text provides an alternative to traditional music appreciation texts while still successfully investing readers with the skills necessary to listen to all music with knowledge and sophistication.

Table of Contents:
PART I PREPARATION FOR LISTENING Chapter 1: Introducing the World of Music The Infinite Variety of Music: A Global Perspective The American Mainstream and Ethnic Diversity Music in Culture Social Aspects Musical Aspects Acculturation Labels: A Help or a Hindrance? Artists and Artistry Goals for Listening Listening Experiences: A Collage of Musical Styles Summary Chapter 2: Vocabulary for Listening and Understanding: The Nature of Music Definitions of Music Physical Characteristics Music as a Science Music as Sound and Silence Music as Movement through Time Expressive and Functional Qualities Music as an Art Music as a Universal Phenomenon Music as a Means of Expression Music as a Psychological Phenomenon Music as a Changing Art Music as a Process The Creative Process The Performance Process The Listening Process Participation in Music Summary Chapter 3: Vocabulary for Listening and Understanding: The Elements of Music Goals for Listening The Elements of Music Pitch (Frequency) Melody Harmony Duration (Time) Rhythm Tempo, Pulse, Meter, Syncopation Bars (Measures), Phrases Loudness (Intensity) Tone Quality (Timbre) Interaction of the Elements To Create a Style: Musical Concepts Unity and Variety Tension and Forward Energy Texture Genres and Forms Melodic Growth and Character Listening Experiences Summary PART II LISTENING TO VERNACULAR MUSIC Chapter 4: American Folk Music Traditions Goals for Listening The Nature of Folk Music Oral Tradition Field Recordings Types of Folk Music Songs Narrative Ballads(Story Songs) Broadsides Lyric Songs Work Songs Children's Songs Rally and Protest songs Dance Music Spirituals and the Blues Folk Roots: An Expanded View Ethnic Traditions A Folk Revival Urban Blues Summary Additional Listening Chapter 5: American Religious Music Traditions Goals for Listening Early American Hymn Singing Psalm Singing Psalters Lining Out Singing Schools The Fasola and Shape-Note Systems Composers and Writers William Billings Isaac Watts Charles Wesley Twentieth-Century Gospel Music Revival Music Traditional Black Gospel Popular Contemporary Styles Summary Additional Listening Chapter 6: Jazz in America Goals for Listening What is Jazz? The Jazz Style The Feel of Swing Instruments Improvisation The Beginnings of Jazz Roots Merging of Cultures and Styles Chronology of Styles New Orleans Jazz Chicago Jazz (Dixieland) Stride and Boogie Woogie Swing and Big Band Jazz Bebop Cool, Hard Bop, Funk, and Free Modern Jazz and Fusion Summary Additional Listening Chapter 7: American Popular Music Goals for Listening The Definition and Scope of Popular Music Pre-Twentieth Century The Colonial Period The First "American" Songs Henry Russell Stephen Foster Rally and Protest Songs Minstrel Show Twentieth Century Tin Pan Alley Vaudeville Musicals Film Radio and Recordings A Transition Country Music Hillbilly Western Swing and Cowboy Songs The Nashville Sound Bluegrass Contemporary Country Sounds African American Influences Gospel Rhythm and Blues The Motown Sound Soul Rap Rock Rock and Roll The Establishment The British Invasion Modern Rock Early Twenty-First Century Music Summary Additional Listening PART III LISTENING TO WORLD MUSIC Goals for Listening Native American Music Style and Context Assimilation and Preservation Ethnic Music in the United States Reggae Latino Music Cajun and Zydeco Music Klezmer Folk and Classical Music of Canada Music of South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean Indigenous Folk Culture Musical Instruments Folk Songs and Dances Church Influence Concert Art Music South America Mexico Summary Additional Listening Chapter 9: Music Beyond the Americas Goals for Listening Music of India Hindustani Music The Musical Elements Performance Popular Music Music of Japan The Musical Tradition Musical Styles and Performance Practice Gagaku Kabuki Koto, Shakuhachi, Shamisen Music of Sub-Saharan Africa Music in Context The Instruments The Musical Style Rhythm Other Aspects of Music Western Influences Popular Music Other Musics Music of Eastern Europe Music of the Jewish People Music of Indonesia Summary Aditional Listening PART 4 LISTENING TO WESTERN CLASSICAL MUSIC Chapter 10 Music to 1600 Goals for Listening The Beginnings of Western Music (until about 1450 A.D.) Gregorian Chant Notation Polyphonic Music The Renaissance (1450-1600) Choral/Vocal Mass Motet Madrigal Instrumental Music The Reformation Composers Josquin des Prez(c. 1440-1521) Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (c. 1525-1594) Giovanni Gabrieli )c. 1557-1612) Summary Additional Listening Chapter 11 Music of the Baroque (1600-1750) Goals for Listening Musical Characteristics Texture Major-Minor Tonal System Continuo Word Painting Other Musical Characteristics Instruments Musical Forms and Genres Orchestral Works Chamber Music Keyboard Works Choral Music Opera Composers Johann Sebastian Bach George Frideric Handel Summary Additional Listening Chapter 12 Music of the Classic Period (1750-1820) Goals for Listening Musical Characteristics Instruments Genres Instrumental Genres Vocal, Choral, Opera Forms Sonata Form Theme and Variations Minuet and trio Rondo Composers Franz Joseph Haydn Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Ludwig van Beethoven Summary Aditional Listening Chapter 13 Music of the Romantic Period (Nineteenth Century) Goals for Listening Musical Characteristics Forms and Genres Composers Franz Schubert Felix Mendelssohn Fryderyk Chopin Johannes Brahms Richard Wagner Giuseppe Verdi Pyotr l'yich Tchaikovsky Other Composers Summary Additional Listening Chapter 14 Music of the Twentieth Century Goals for Listening Musical Characteristics Experimental Music Stylistic Developments Impressionsim: Claude Debussy Neoclassicism: Igor Stravinsky Atonal Music and Serialism: Arnold Schoenberg Nationalism and Folk Music: Bela Bartok Electronic Music: Edgard Varese Chance Music: John Cage Minimalism Traditional Sounds Summary Additional Listening Chapter 15 American Classical Music Goals for Listening Perspectives on American Classical Music The Classical/Popular Dichotomy The Preoccupation with Europe Romanticism and the Virtuoso The French Connection Immigrants Music Instruction American Composers Experimentalism: Charles Ives Nationalism: Aaron Copland Additional American Composers Summary Additional Listening Chapter 16 Music in American Society The Music Industry Manufacturing Musical Instruments Audio Equipment Uniforms and Robes Publishing Merchandising Performance Management Music and the Media Radio Music in Advertising Music Videos Music, Computers, and the Internet Newsprint Music in the Community A Diverse Musical Life Promotion and Development Government Support Corporate Support Civic Support Summary Appendix A: Classification of Instruments according to Methods of Tone Production Appendix B: Architectural and Audio Acoustics Glossary Bibliography Credits Index