Classical Music For Dummies!
A small amount of knowledge about Classical Music can make a massive difference to the way you listen. A book like Classical Music for Dummies could make all the difference for an inexperienced listener.
A basic guide to Classical Music can really make sense of the genre for you, and improve your knowledge
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If your knowledge of Classical music is less than impressive, don’t feel alone. In a time when Postmodernism and digitalisation has taken over the mainstream, it can be difficult to retain an appreciation for art that was created in an era when pocket watches were considered ‘high tech’.
This lack of appreciation is a shortcoming so common that, in fact, the Classical Music for Dummies book is one of the top-selling classical music guides available; apparently, there are many who are a self-proclaimed Classical Music Dummy!
After recognising the demand for such a book, the publishers of the Dummies Series decided to offer even more specialised knowledge with Opera for Dummies and Mozart for Dummies - with all three texts published simultaneously, and selling millions of copies worldwide.
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The original Classical Music for Dummies is divided into 17 chapters (plus various appendices and ‘best of’ lists). However, it is not a text for the dilettante alone; there are enough practical lists and timelines within to help even the most trained of Classical music students and performers brush up on the genre that they have come to know and love.
Beginning with an 80-page overview of the history of Classical music, it is as quick a read as your favourite gossip rag, with humourous anecdotes and trivia that are sure to make this often-dry topic quite enjoyable. The book covers everything from theory to orchestration, and boasts that even the most uninformed and untrained ear will soon know how to tell the difference between a Sonata and a Cantata. There are even lists in the back of the book that state the works that are most recognised and played throughout the world—the works that every Classical music connoisseur should know. These lists are divided into wherever your tastes lie: from the ‘mild’ to the ‘hot’ on the ‘taste meter’. A CD is included with the book, on which several of these pieces are performed.
The original 'Classical Music' dummies book has spawned a whole series of different Classical Music book subjects
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The success of such a book is understandable. Often, the reason that many music lovers fail to connect with Classical music is because they do not have the appreciation that comes with understanding the history behind these great works. The concept is similar to literature: upon first glance, a classic piece of literature might appear to be complicated and outdated, a relic that is no longer applicable to modern day living. However, upon learning more about the author and the times in which it was written, readers become sensitive to the human struggle that is mirrored in the writer’s art. The same is true of music. Upon learning of Beethoven’s life and his unrequited love, the passion in his music becomes fierier, more connected to the memories we have of our own experiences.
Out of all of the varieties of music that we currently enjoy, no other genre offers as much culture, genius and history as Classical. For those who mistakenly write it off as being outmoded and too complex, books such as Classical Music for Dummies can be a fantastic resource for making the genre come alive for them. After all, you are far less likely to snooze at the Opera when you understand the story - even when it does go on for almost four hours straight! Those four hours took someone a lifetime of chaos and passion to create.
