The Orchestra: A Collection of 23 Essays on Its Origins and Transformations

by Joan Peyser

The symphonic orchestra is intriguingly considered in essays by 23 leading music authors and thinkers. Topics include historical beginnings, the role of the conductor, the orchestral audience, the nature of the repertoire, and how recordings have affected the modern orchestra. With a new editor's introduction for this 2006 edition and a glossary of terms.

Genres: Music

658 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2006

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The handful of outstanding contributions -- by Messrs. Houtchens, Todd, Weber, and Burkholder -- are overwhelmed by the others which are mediocre or irrelevant at best.

[Barbara Ardinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a magnificent book this is! Twenty-three essays on the history and transformations of the symphony orchestra, plus a handy glossary at the back for those of us (even though I had eleven years of piano lessons) who don't know all of music's technical terms. One essay describes the physical properties of strings and horns and tells how our modern instruments were developed. Another essay explains how the western European Romantic composers came to be "the classical" composers, the ones we hear over and over and over at concerts. Another essay says that the orchestra is a museum of favorite (primarily 19th-century)classical music. This is partly because concert-goers are a conservative bunch and don't like "modern" (that is, atonal or electronic) classical music. Another essay explains who Beethoven and Wagner became the top classical composers and how their followers often hated each other. Another essay traces the rise of the super-star conductor. Even though this book was originally published in 1986, if you love music it's worth reading.

[Evan]

Despite the exceedingly dull title, this is actually a lively and fascinating fact-filled overview of the history of symphonic orchestras, including chapters on orchestras and recordings and on star conductors. I've only skimmed this but really want to bite into it soon. It looks to be a unique resource -- without being boringly academic.