Classical Music by Phil G. Goulding Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Classical Music
Book Review: A GOOD START
Summary: 4 Stars
Gould's book is an enjoyable and informative primer for anyone wishing to expand a tentative interest in classical music. A large part of its charm is the author's admitted non-expertise on the subject; he does not forget that his reader is probably as daunted by it as he once was. The first section of the book is a discussion of musical forms and structures(helpful if you don't know a nocturne from an overture), followed by a brief but useful chronology of the classical music periods. Thereafter begins a profile of 50 composers in order of their greatness, as perceived by Gould. The text and sidebars are lively and humorous enough to be enjoyed even by those who care not one whit about classical music and includes a list of recommended works for those who might. I am not certain why some reviewers were offended that Gould ranked the composers instead of say, listing them alphabetically. Surely these reviewers have at least one private list ranking the greatest of some subject or other; I guess Gould's trespass was in making his list public.
Also, one reviewer was displeased that virtually no 20th century composers were among Gould's 50 greatest. I believe this was because A) it can be argued that the music of some 20th century composers has deviated too far from classical models to be considered classical in the traditional sense. And B) this book was meant as a beginner's guide, and recommending Ives or Messiaen to a classical music novice would make as much sense as recommending Joyce's "Ulysses" to a classic literature novice.
Book Review: A funny and good book to get ideas
Summary: 4 Stars
I recommend this book for beginners or even for listeners who want to dig a little bit beyond what they already know of these 50 composers. The book is funny, easy to read and the breakdown of all opus into listen-to-these-pieces-first lists is very helpful, albeit shallow.
I find the reviews listed below do present the pros and cons of this book very well. I think this book ought to be seen as a complement to other sources. There are so many classical CDs out there, one does not know where to begin. With a lot of humor, Goulding helps to pick out starter kits for 50 composers. Even if you bought one CD per composer per week, in a year you would have barely scratched the surface anyway. I feel one can get a lot of mileage out of this book.
How many albums does it take to get acquainted with say five centuries of music? You have to start somewhere!
In my opinion this book is excellent for beginners, but it ought to be complemented with a decent music history book. Personally I already have a few of those, and recently I got my hands on the Rough Guide to Classical Music which takes the classic 'dictionary of composers' approach. That book has a sort of "top ten" you-should-listen-to-this-first list approach as well, and for beginners lists are good.
Book Review: A good introduction to classical music, with one exception
Summary: 4 Stars
Mr. Goulding's book is a good introduction to classical music. As with all things artistic, there are often differing opinions concerning taste. Mr. Goulding makes one amazing omission. Where is Serge Rachmaninoff? Can there be any doubt that this man is among the top 50 composers ever? This error is not enough to not recommend the book, however. It is enjoyable for the most part.Book Review: A good overview and starting point
Summary: 4 Stars
Some years ago Phil Goulding decided he would get into classical music. He found this a difficult and intimidating process: record store assistants were more ready to discuss the merits of different conductors than dealing with his naive request for "the best in classical music." And doing it properly requires some arcane knowledge: Who came first, Mozart or Beethoven? What's the difference between a sonata and a concerto? And just what is "the best in classical music," anyway?
Some answers are straightforward (Mozart came before Beethoven, though they did overlap; a sonata features one or a few instruments on their own while a concerto accompanies them with an orchestra) and some are not. For example, there is no simple answer to what is the best in classical music. Goulding's answer consists of selecting the 50 greatest composers and 20, 10, and 5 of their best and most representative works. He complicates this by listing the composers in descending order of greatness. That he categorizes them as Immortals, Demigods, Composers of Genius, and Artists of a High Order and insists that Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart are the three and only three Immortals and that dropping the Demigods (numbers 4 through 10) down to Artists of a High Order (numbers 21 through 50) is very bad form shows the somewhat tongue-in-cheek tone he maintains, respectful though never dry or commanding. Another indication is his shorthand reference to each composer: Chopin is "Mr. Piano", Mussogsky is "Most Nationalistic and Most Daring Russian Nationalist."
Each composer's section provides a brief biography and description: what he is known for, what he is best at, and what his fellow composers thought of him. Each concludes with the aforemention 5, 10, and 20, referred to respectively as the "Starter Kit", "A Top Ten", and "The Master Collection."
Preceding this core of the book are chapters placing the composers in their time and place and mentioning those who didn't quite make the list, and discussing some of the key concepts of music: rhythm, melody, texture, and so on.
The final section maps the "Starter Kits" to specific recordings. As this book came out in 1992, this is somewhat dated but still helpful. A great recording never becomes less than great even though new rivals may appear.
One may argue with this approach. Restricting the best of the best to five works from each composer may be too generous to the lesser ones on the list while discarding worthy entries from the greater. On the other hand, it is likely a better way of producing a representative selection throughout the history and geography of classical music than a smaller number of composers. I found it interesting to learn of composers like Palestrina, Bruckner, Hindemith, and Rameau that a review more focused on the best of the best might have overlooked.
I found this a fascinating read on the whole and an excellent "bathroom book" (one that can be read in bits at a time). Though I got it from the library, I am inclined to buy a copy. I am currently slightly ahead of where Goulding was in his early stages, being somewhat familiar with classical music. However, that's largely limited to my favorites: Beethoven's symphonies, the best of Bach, and a few other works of note, branching out slowly as I hear something I like on the local classical music station. This would provide an excellent guide to expanding my horizons.
P.S. Matthew Cline, below, makes some worthy points but grossly misinterprets the author in some areas. This list of top 50 does not represent his personal preference but his estimation of the opinions of experts. Cline says he has issues with anyone who would prefer Telemann to Mussorgsky or Rachmaninov. If he'd actually read Goulding carefully, he would note that in the Telemann section he says, "One Telemann concerto grosso a month just about does it for me. For readers who have the same reaction to Telemann, my advice is to strike him from the list and substitute Sergei Rachmaninoff." So Goulding is much closer to Cline's opinion than Cline gives him credit for.
Book Review: A music history book is more worth your time...
Summary: 1 Stars
To sum it up and repeat what others have already said, Goulding's work here is essentially like every music appreciation textbook I've ever read (perhaps slightly less dry) without the musical analyzation or description, and without the introductory cd sampler. It's fine but hardly ideal for classical music novices who know little to nothing going in, and for those who get enthused about reading page upon page of of lists and categorzized works without much of an idea what any of it ultimately sounds like.
Not to mention I find his list stifling, assertations like "Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven CANNOT be replaced in the top 3" laughable, and the obvious bias against post-WWII art music disappointing. Like most intro to classical music books, the author suggests keeping an open mind about 20th century music on the one hand to prevent being accused of a bias, but on the other hand the undertones in the writing suggest anything past the mid-point of the 20th century is no fun to listen to and too bizarre to be taken seriously. Which is an opinion, sure, but not one that should be forced upon novices who deserve the right to make up their own minds without any pre-concieved notions of what kind of classical music is worth their time. I mean, maybe I am the only one who thinks it, but Goulding's inclusion of someone like Bizet on the list for ONE opera and his omission of the likes of Schoenberg, Cage, Xenakis, Varese, Reich, Stockhausen and others was a horrible mistake and a grave underestimation of these composer's influence on the music and musicians who came after.