Music: The Definitive Visual History

The Definitive Visual History

by D.K. Publishing

Produced in association with the Smithsonian and including images from the United States National Music Museum, Music: The Definitive Visual History guides readers through the progression of music since its prehistoric beginnings, discussing not just Western classical music, but music from all around the world.

Telling the story of musical developments, era by era, linking musical theory, technology, and human genius into the narrative, Music: The Definitive Visual Guide profiles the lives of groundbreaking musicians from Mozart to Elvis, takes an in-depth look at the history and function of various instruments, and includes listening suggestions for each music style.

Anyone with an interest in music will enjoy learning about the epic journey the art has taken over the years and will learn to appreciate music with a new ear.

Genres: Music, History, Reference, Nonfiction, Art, Biography, Education

482 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2013

About the author

Dorling Kindersley (DK) is a British multinational publishing company specializing in illustrated reference books for adults and children in 62 languages. It is part of Penguin Random House, a consumer publishing company jointly owned by Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA and Pearson PLC. Bertelsmann owns 53% of the company and Pearson owns 47%.

Established in 1974, DK publishes a range of titles in genres including travel (including Eyewitness Travel Guides), arts and crafts, business, history, cooking, gaming, gardening, health and fitness, natural history, parenting, science and reference. They also publish books for children, toddlers and babies, covering such topics as history, the human body, animals and activities, as well as licensed properties such as LEGO, Disney and DeLiSo, licensor of the toy Sophie la Girafe. DK has offices in New York, London, Munich, New Delhi, Toronto and Melbourne.

Source: Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Mike Smith]

Not something you read cover to cover but I did go through it twice. The history of music, song, dance, people and instruments is fascinating for anyone with even the most casual interest in music. Check it out!

[Flermilyxx]

** Some thoughts: 5:48PM (GMT+11) | Sydney, Australia (pretty much done with study for the day; now, time to wrap up thoughts on books I decided not to finish, or am moving on from [pt.3]) **

Another "coffee table book" that's hard to sit down and dedicate some time to read. Beautifully laid out, though, with such a rich array of details about the history of music. My favourite discovery from Music: The Definitive Visual History was learning that Pope John XXII straight up banned polyphonic music (which is that with two or more melodic lines played at the same time) in 1324, deeming it utterly "indecent". Makes me think he might've been one of the first real appreciators of "drone music".

[Alex]

Very informative on none-Western music and on musical instruments, with enormous number of pictures. However by proportion the coverage on important historical figures, schools, and especially techniques, of Western music, is somewhat too limited. No matter how important a composer or a performer is, he or she is given in the book two pages at the most, of which the space is further reduced by one of more large pictures.

[Vida Foruzan]

Definitely worth reading, kinda skipped a lot of the classical stuff bc they were just waaay too much

[Rosebud]

Lots of information for anyone interested in music or history, as this begins with the music of early humans and takes the reader through all types of genres up to the present day. I enjoyed that they pulled out a lesser known musician/composer to highlight during the different periods rather than just focusing on the most famous from each era. A fun book.

[Lorenzo Lucchi]

Carino, è fatto molto bene.
Per forza di cose rimane un po’ in superficie, ma in generale le informazioni sono corrette e il libro risulta gradevolissimo.
Lo consiglio ai giovani allievi e agli appassionati di musica, qui c’ è più o meno tutto.

[Francine Chu]

A comprehensive and beautifully illustrated book on the history of music

[Susan]

Beautifully detailed book both in written and pictorial format, all 480 pages.

[Geri Hoekz]

This is the most comprehensive book I've read on music history and musicology written for a popular audience. The only reason I gave 4 stars is because of some noticeable omissions - I'd have given an additional half-star if possible. Readers will probably notice the missing parts based on what they track, and I'm no exception, so it's somewhat subjective. Still, Linda Ronstadt is pretty hard to miss. Another gap is the early music revival of the late 1960's - 70's, spearheaded by musicians such as David Munrow and John Renbourne, and made popular by Fairport Convention, Pentangle, Steeleye Span and others. Then again, maybe you'd have to be a follower of early music and folk revivals to notice this. And if the book had included absolutely everything, it would probably weigh 50 lbs. So, for a good basic background on music throughout history and around the world, plus a lowdown on its various instruments, I'd recommend starting here, knowing that filling in the gaps would require other sources.

[Indah Threez Lestari]

19 - 2023

[Matthew Walsh]

Great coffee table book.

[Eshani]

Contrary to the description, this book discusses music of western europe and of christianity, with the exception of 15-20 pages out of 480 dedicated to non-western and historic music.

[D]

5-

[Patricia]

Pretty interesting and I learned a lot, although the title is a bit misleading as this is definitely a history of classical music in the west, with a few mentions of other areas/genres

[Jeannine]

This coffee-table sized book provides enough information for three or four volumes of a more-handable book. In addition to the history and lots of photos, there are lists of Most Notable compositions for each era and all of these - or least the ones I looked at so far- can be enjoyed on youtube. It's quite a trip and I'll tripping for at least six more months.

[Dawn]

A substantial reference book. Well written and presented.