4.58 avg rating — 12 ratings

"The "Schillinger System of Musical Composition" is a work of pure genius by an insightful and original thinker who discovered the natural, universal consilience between science, maths and music. The System provides the solutions as to how all of harmony functions, and will generally provide the dedicated reader with comprehensive and exhaustive techniques for the production and execution of perfect voice-leading, melody, endless variation in rhythm, arrangement and form, etc.

Some of Schillinger's students included Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Glen Miller ("In the Mood" and "Moonlight Serenade" were originally homework exercises), George Gershwin, and Maurice Jarre (the film composer and Jean Michele's dad). It has been the corner-stone for much of the music to come out of Hollywood since the late 1930's, and I suspect has been the tool of trade of such figures as film composers like James Horner, and Leonard and Elmer Bernstein. Even the theme from "The Bugs Bunny Show" demonstrates typical Schillinger harmonic strategies, for God's sake! Almost 80 years since its publication and relatively few musicians (and even fewer of their teachers and professors of harmony) seem to know much about it. Or even that it exists at all!

I can not recommend this book high enough. Although not an easy read, hidden in its 1,500 pages are the techniques to answering every musical question you will ever have. You will have to read it at least twice (AT LEAST) to connect all the dots, but then you'll be able to connect ALL of the dots. ALL OF THEM! Get the picture? Now... GO!"

4.50 avg rating — 14 ratings

"Another work of pure genius, demonstrating the proportional, mathematical and systematical inter-connectness of all of the disciplines of the Arts, including but not exclusive to music."

4.71 avg rating — 7 ratings

"It is was it says. And is a fairly formidable resource, although not exhaustive. Rhythms beyond 9 attacks per bar are not represented, so it's missing all the rhtyhms of Africa and Cuba (12 attacks per bar - 2,048 rhythms) or other Latin American music (16 attacks per bar - 32,768 rhythms). But that would have been a big book, indeed...."

4.67 avg rating — 9 ratings

"It is what it says, and illuminates much of the scale-to-harmony theory discussed in "The Schillinger System of Musical Composition"."