A Little History of Music

by Robert Philip

A lively, engaging guide to music around the world, from prehistory to the present
 
Human beings have always made music. Music can move us and tell stories of faith, struggle, or love. It is common to all cultures across the world. But how has it changed over the millennia?
 
Robert Philip explores the extraordinary history of music in all its forms, from our earliest ancestors to today’s mass-produced songs. This is a truly global story. Looking to Europe, South America, Asia, Africa, and beyond, Philip reveals how musicians have been brought together by trade and migration and examines the vast impact of colonialism. From Hildegard von Bingen and Clara Schumann to Bob Dylan and Aretha Franklin, great performers and composers have profoundly shaped music as we know it.
 
Covering a remarkable range of genres, including medieval chant, classical opera, jazz, and hip hop, this Little History shines a light on the wonder of music—and why it is treasured across the world.

Genres: Music, History, Nonfiction, Audiobook

320 pages, Paperback

Published May 13, 2025

Reviews

[Christopher Steussy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book really should be subtitled (of the western orchestral type). Earliest parts of the book, from Neanderthals to early humans, up to Hinduism and Buddhism, most interesting. Then author makes a caveat that the next several chapters will focus on "Western" music and explains why this is necessary. Unfortunately it really is the rest of the book. There are momentary glances at events in China, the Americas, Africa, but these feel sprinkled in for effect. Overall a decent read, just know what your getting into. "The singing Neanderthals" by Steven Mithen, might also be worth a look.

[Natthaphon · Rating 3 out of 5]

just history of music, no new or special knowledge/idea

[&rea Suven · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is what it is - a LITTLE history. To condense and simplify the complexity of the history of music is a crime, and Robert Philip rightly acknowledges so - but, well, this book serves its purpose if you’re simply looking for a quick spark notes.

[Frtaberna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool book. I liked the author’s friendly and unassuming tone along with his ability to synthesise in ways that are not conclusive but help as first building blocks for diving further on what interests one most.

Of course it is simplified but he did a fine job. I think he succeeds in getting the reader closer to what music meant for the people making and listening/participating in it through time, periods and cultures, and also threading these together and making a coherent bigger picture of what we call the “history of music”. What it meant in each of these is very varied, and you get some simple yet illuminating descriptions of each so you can appreciate much more the beauty in all kinds of music.

What I value most about having read this is the large collection of new music styles, composers, periods, etc. that I hadn’t heard of and can now check out with at least a basic understanding that will make for a nice listening experience. That’s the cool thing about a book on music; it is a kind of multimedia reading experience where you get to check out what those verbal descriptions of music actually mean when you listen to the music

[Eric Borum · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know this is an inherently flawed and impossible task but something was still disappointing about this. I think it was all pretty one note and didn’t have any sort of motion or ebb and flow. The author did acknowledge this, but this has an issue focusing too much on Europe and North America. I would have appreciated learning about more global cultures than just whatever was the widest spread. And including their experiences at the end was an odd choice for such a limited number of pages for such a huge task. Still, I learned a lot and did a good job at picking out a couple people and pieces that represented whole movements. I liked the connections made between chapters.

[Nick Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Philip is obviously well-versed in a variety of music and does an admirable job covering so much history in so few pages. I think he could have benefited from an overarching thesis or point of view, and more structure and flow between his chapters. There are a lot of mini tangents into obscure classical artists, and it’s evident that this is the author’s preferred genre.

I recognize that this is not my own, and found the discussions of more contemporary artists that I know more compelling. That being said, I did enjoy reading about musical worlds that I’m largely ignorant of and the history of music ranging from early forms to exploration.

[Selena · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
This was a very well rounded view of the history of music. It covered all ages from cavemen up until now and all countries across the globe. This was an academic work so it could be a bit dry at times, but also once it got to the 60s the author seemed to forget that and put in his own feelings on the Beatles (which I didn't care about). I think my favorite part was the early history of women in music explaining how it worked in the domestic sphere and about patriotic music the late 19th and early 20th century.

[Garrett Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting overview of music’s journey from ancient chants to modern pop, A Little History of Music introduces the reader to a literal world of composers, performers, and traditions. I could have used more anecdotes amidst the data, but the book accomplishes its purpose. It won’t leave you hungry to learn more, but it will scratch the itch of curiosity that made you pick up the book in the first place.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author is extremely knowledgeable and the scope of the book is phenomenal – from Mesopotamia to New Orleans, opera to bebop, every continent and a wealth of ethnic traditions - and all in an amazingly compact form and readable style. An added bonus is that the story also contains quite a bit of the history of dance. The narrator brings the audio version to life.

[larafm · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was an extremely comprehensive look, still with an western perspective, but touching on all the other worlds' movements recognizing their value (past, present and future) in music history. Being fond of music from not mainstream countries, from different eras and genres, I appreciated this book very much.

[Marcos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat irregular but always interesting, RP attempts to go through the history of Music, from the dawn of civilization til modern pop Music. I’ve found a little annoying the insistence on the Anglo-saxon perspective, giving it much more relevance than it probably has.

[Annamarie Ogunmola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a music history review, but got a pleasant surprise. Unlike all my past music history studies, this book emphasized non-Western music, women, and people of color. The usual was there as well, but I really enjoyed the fresh perspective.

[Jer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounded up. Not a bad history intro, certainly hard to pack it all into one relatively short tome, but the author did a decent job.

Easy to consume with some tidbits and connections I’d never made before. For the novice, not a bad starting point.

[Alfredo Lefranc · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author starts by defining music as the combination of sounds, rythm and harmony. Much like the definition, this 'little history of music' lacks cohesion, clarity and most importantly, spirit.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating - well done and very interesting.

[Mark Koester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read with Lots of learnings. Main grip is focus on orchestra music and limited portrait of music since 1963 / post Beatles.

[Kyle A Massa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Successfully condenses a whole lot of history into an informative yet approachable package.

[Thomas Mellor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read and very informative. Highly recommend for those who just want the big picture of music over all cultures, nationalities and centuries.