One of the most important ethnomusicologists of the century, John Blacking achieved international recognition for his book, How Musical Is Man? Known for his interest in the relationship of music to biology, psychology, dance, and politics, Blacking was deeply committed to the idea that music-making is a fundamental and universal attribute of the human species. He attempted to document the ways in which music-making expresses the human condition, how it transcends social divisions, and how it can be used to improve the quality of human life. This volume brings together in one convenient source eight of Blacking's most important theoretical papers along with an extensive introduction by the editor. Drawing heavily on his fieldwork among the Venda people of South Africa, these essays reveal his most important theoretical themes such as the innateness of musical ability, the properties of music as a symbolic or quasi-linguistic system, the complex relation between music and social institutions, and the relation between scientific musical analysis and cultural understanding.

One of the most important ethnomusicologists of the century, John Blacking achieved international recognition for his book, How Musical Is Man? Known for his interest in the relationship of music to biology, psychology, dance, and politics, Blacking was deeply committed to the idea that music-making is a fundamental and universal attribute of the human species. He attempted to document the ways in which music-making expresses the human condition, how it transcends social divisions, and how it can be used to improve the quality of human life. This volume brings together in one convenient source eight of Blacking's most important theoretical papers along with an extensive introduction by the editor. Drawing heavily on his fieldwork among the Venda people of South Africa, these essays reveal his most important theoretical themes such as the innateness of musical ability, the properties of music as a symbolic or quasi-linguistic system, the complex relation between music and social institutions, and the relation between scientific musical analysis and cultural understanding.

Musicians imagine music by means of functional models which determine certain aspects of the music while leaving others open. This gap between image and the experience it models offers a source of compositional creativity; different musical cultures embody different ways of imagining sound as music. Drawing on psychological and philosophical materials as well as the analysis of specific musical examples, Cook here defines the difference between music theory and aesthetic criticism, and affirms the importance of the "ordinary listener" in musical culture.

A lively comparison of musical meaning in Ohio's Jazz, metal, and hard rock scene. This vivid ethnography of the musical lives of heavy metal, rock, and jazz musicians in Cleveland and Akron, Ohio shows how musicians engage with the world of sound to forge meaningful experiences of music. Unlike most popular music studies, which only provide a scholar's view, this book is based on intensive fieldwork and hundreds of hours of in-depth interviews. Rich descriptions of the musical life of metal bars and jazz clubs get readers close to the people who make and listen to the music. Of special interest are Harris M. Berger's interviews with Timmy "The Ripper" Owens, now famous as lead singer for the pioneering heavy metal band, Judas Priest. Owens and other performers share their own experiences of the music, thereby challenging traditional notions of harmony and musical structure. Using ideas from practice theory and phenomenology, Berger shows that musical perception is a kind of practice, both creatively achieved by the listener and profoundly informed by social context.

Women, Music, Culture: An Introduction, Second Edition is the first undergraduate textbook on the history and contribution of women in a variety of musical genres and professions, ideal for students in courses in both music and women's studies. A compelling narrative, accompanied by over 50 guided listening examples, brings the world of women in music to life, examining a community of female musicians, including composers, producers, consumers, performers, technicians, mothers, and educators in art music and popular music. The book features a wide array of pedagogical aids, including a running glossary and a comprehensive companion website with streamed audio tracks, that help to reinforce key figures and terms. This new edition includes a major revision of the Women in World Music chapter, a new chapter in Western Classical "Work" in the Enlightenment, and a revised chapter on 19th Century Romanticism: Parlor Songs to Opera. 20th Century Art Music.

Since the 1990s the cruise industry has become one of the largest employers of musicians in the world. Thousands of professional musicians work on cruise ships daily, entertaining millions of passengers. Cruisicology: The Music Culture of Cruise Ships provides the first in-depth account of the culture and the industrial determinants of cruise ship music. Based on interviews with working musicians and coauthor David Cashman’s experience as a cruise ship musician, this book investigates how music is organized and made onboard a cruise ship. David Cashman and Philip Hayward study the working life of musicians, why and how corporate shipping lines include music onboard their vessels, the history of musicians on passenger shipping, and the likely future directions of musical entertainment within the industry. Cashman and Hayward illustrate the positive and negative experience of artists making music every day in confined spaces with close proximity to their audiences.

This book brings together the collected writings of Daniel Asia from the last 10 years. The articles, reviews, and essays gathered here originally appeared in noted publications such as The New Criterion and Academic Questions, and as blog entries with the Huffington Post. Topics discussed include classical music, universities, Judaism, politics, and American culture. All essays are presented in clear and elegant non-academic prose, and are often imbued with a wry and delicate sense of humor. This book is a fine introduction to the current state of high culture in America, with an emphasis on classical music and its recent and current best composers. As such, it is perfect for the curious lay person seeking knowledge in these areas, and for academics and their students working in the areas of music composition, music history, introduction to music, sociology, politics, education, American studies and Jewish studies.