Performance Practice: A Dictionary-Guide for Musicians

The first A-Z of its kind, this indispensable reference on performance practice is a concise and convenient volume that enables musicians to easily find information on musical performance and how it has changed over the centuries. A leading scholar in the field takes the far-reaching research from hundreds of specialized studies and condenses it into discrete, alphabetized topics which make an excellent guide to a complex and daunting field. Throughout the volume the information is subdivided into historical periods, or elements of composers' performance, and this information is presented side-by-side with established, earlier known information, up-to-date bibliographies and key questions which guide the reader to what is most essential. Including entries on: * important composers * musicians/performers * specific instruments * technical terms * tempo, thorough bass, dynamics and tuning, this is an excellent and incredibly useful reference for students, listeners and both professional and amateur musicians.

Table of Contents:
Introduction, Abbreviations of Reference Works, Abbreviations, Index of Theorists and Early Writers, Listing from A to Z, Index

Review :
"Educators, students, musicians, and lay listeners alike---anyone with an interest in how written music is to be translated from the page into sound---will welcome this timely, wide-ranging synthesis of the research and scholarship that lend authority to thoughtful interpretation... The book is thorough in its coverage... Recommended. All levels." -- Choice "For students, performers, and scholars, this alphabetical reference to performance proactice gives information on the historical performance of instruments, genres, techniques, and ornaments, and contains entries on performers, early and more recent composers, and theorists, with some illustrations. Some entries are brief and some are extensive. Provides a list of theorists and early writers, and bibliographic references within the text." -- Reference & Research Book News "Performance Practice is an excellent ready-reference work for investigating the many aspects of historical performance practices and how one might approach the subject today. Praise goes to the author for presenting this work in dictionary form; not only does it make the subject accessible, it also artfully engages the reader to explore this fascinating subject of performance practices. This work is highly recommended for all musicians and reference divisions of college and university libraries." -- American Reference Books Annual "This guide to the current literature on the subject is a tour-de-force by one of the pioneers in the field... While many entries provide basic definitions as guides to beginning studenets, other more technical essays are aimed at advanced acholars... This groundbreaking guide will be essential for academic music collections." --Lawrence Looks at Books, Gale Reference Reviews