History of Music

by Professor Cecil Gray

By far the most stimulating and complete introduction to styles and schools of western music, this work will always remain a classic. Covering the whole of the Christian era, the work is particularly strong in interpretation and readability. The music lover will find it arresting from cover to cover.

292 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

Reviews

[Amy Do · Rating 2 out of 5]

A more accurate title would be "The history of European music". It's not a great introduction to music, and reflects more of the author's attitude towards different schools of music, rather than offering a discussion of how music changed throughout the periods. I appreciated the discussion in the last chapter of how music is reflected in philosophy and conceptions of aesthetics though.

The one thing that really turned me off about this book is the author claiming that no female composers of eminence would ever appear. Yuck! This old-age attitude needs to die.

[Mary Kovarik · Rating 4 out of 5]

One thing my daughter Anne taught me was how to appreciate different styles of music. This book granted me new insights to the world of music. I also gained a deeper appreciation of what our daughter Anne has gone through to achieve her Doctorate of Musical Arts.