Product Description

"Altogether it is a book that should be required reading for any student of music, be he composer, performer, or theorist. It clears the air of many confused notions . . . and lays the groundwork for exhaustive study of the basic problem of music theory and aesthetics, the relationship between pattern and meaning."--David Kraehenbuehl, Journal of Music Theory

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #306918 in Books
• Published on: 1961-02-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 315 pages

Customer Reviews

A masterpiece in its own right
How many music theory books written over 45 years ago are still taken seriously, never mind still in print?

It was my great pleasure to study with Leonard Meyer at the University of Pennsylvania from '86 through '89. Even though I am a composer and not really a theorist any more, I consider him one of my most influential teachers. His writings and lectures deeply affected me as a composer in that his understanding of music -- how it works, how it affects us, how our individual cognitive processes come to bear on what we are hearing -- found its way into my aesthetic. Even though Dr. Meyer in later years came to argue with himself (this was tremendous fun, by the way: sitting in his lectures, listening to him tell himself why his earlier writings were so wrong), this is great stuff, written by a great man.

Be forewarned that in spite of the title, this is musically technical stuff: don't expect vague, poetic philosophizing. The analyses are intense and detailed and require a strong background in music theory and form.

a truly innovative work
I see that the other reviewers here either hate this book or love it. I fall in the latter category. Having studied music theory extensively, this is the one book that actually deals with music as a communicating art, not as a bunch of symbols on paper. I think that any composer of music (pop, Classical, rock, etc.) could learn valuable pointers on how to write music that is interesting and moving to the listener. One of the problems with much 20th Century music is that it exists on paper as something interesting, but does not reach the ear as such. It appears that Leonard Meyer has been daring enough to admit that music can affect people's emotions and maintain their interest intellectually, rather than just existing as an exercise in note placement (alla Schenker or Forte).

Incredible insights into the nature of music
How very few thinkers on music dare even consider the topic of emotion and meaning in music shows the difficulty of the task Meyer sets himself. This is a truly important book--far beyond any history or theoretical tome I've ever read, this aims right at the heart of what music is about. It is very tough going--this was adapted from Meyer's doctoral dissertation, but it repays every effort made. Meyer's mind is enviably far-ranging; he uses examples from the visual arts to the hard sciences and philosophy to make his points. His later book, Explaining Music, is an easier read, still full of valuable insights but much more oriented toward a theoretical, quasi-Schenkerian approach to music. But for me, Emotion and Meaning in Music (along with his much later Style and Music) is much more significant, dealing with more profound and much less frequently discussed issues. This book has my HIGHEST recommndation.