San Antonio College Library

"This market-leading, best-selling book covers ethnomusicology-the study of music in a people's way of life, which treats music as a distillation of cultural styles. The authors of this book approach diverse musical styles with the desire to understand them on their own terms-as the people who make the music would understand them. The book is organized by region. Each study focuses on the life histories and autobiographies that are essential to understanding...

The author asks: What is music? If the question is simple, the answers are not. In this fascinating introduction to the remarkable diversity of world music--from Swiss yodeling to pilgrims' chants, Yiddish folk songs to 'Art-Song' from Tunis--the author explores the interpretation and, sometimes, misinterpretation of world music by the West. Musical first encounters can be traced back to the biblical account of Abraham's attempt to sacrifice Isaac...