Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Classical Music But Were Too Afraid to Ask

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

For readers who are unsure of the difference between an alto and a contralto, wonder exactly when to applaud at a concert, or aren't even sure what music they should be listening to in the first place, this is the perfect guide

All too often, potential classical music listeners are put off due to its perceived elitism. This book gleefully dispels this notion and many others as it works brilliantly to make classical music not only accessible, but also disarmingly simple and utterly engrossing. It is broken into three sections designed to steer readers through the terminology and etiquette of classical music; open the fascinating history of the genre and its key figures over the last thousand years, showing their sheer brilliance coupled with their very human natures; and provide an indispensible reference guide for any reader, whether they prefer traditional chamber music or sweeping film scores.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Introduction (p. VII)
• How to use this Book (p. XII)
• I Getting into Classical Music (p. 2)
• 1 Unravelling the Jargon (p. 7)
• 2 Listening to Classical Music Live (p. 27)
• 3 Your Own Classical Music Collection (p. 40)
• II A Brief History of Classical Music (p. 60)
• 4 Early Music (p. 64)
• 5 The Baroque Period (p. 75)
• 6 The Classical Period (p. 91)
• 7 The Romantic Period (p. 105)
• 8 The 20th Century (p. 142)
• 9 The 21st Century (p. 161)
• III Stats and Facts (p. 176)
• 10 Who was Composing What When? (p. 179)
• 11 The Classical FM Hall of Fame Top 300 (p. 194)
• 12 What they Said about Each other (p. 207)
• 13 Classical Music used in Films (p. 210)
• 14 Where to Find Out More (p. 214)
• Acknowledgements (p. 217)
• About the Authors (p. 219)
• Index (p. 221)