Product Details
Emotion and Meaning in Music (Phoenix Books)

Emotion and Meaning in Music (Phoenix Books)
By Leonard B. Meyer

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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  "This is the best study of its kind to have come to the attention of this reviewer."—Jules Wolffers, The Christian Science Monitor

"It is not too much to say that his approach provides a basis for the meaningful discussion of emotion and meaning in all art."—David P. McAllester, American Anthropologist

"A book which should be read by all who want deeper insights into music listening, performing, and composing."—Marcus G. Raskin, Chicago Review

Product Details

  • Amazon Sales Rank: #116029 in Books
  • Published on: 1961-02-15
  • Original language: English
  • Number of items: 1
  • Binding: Paperback
  • 315 pages

Customer Reviews

excellent smooth reading5
I have yet to finish up with the book but it's a very clear thorough book. Meyer explains details that you thought couldn't be explained. I have intuited a lot of the material but it is so darn gratifying to see it written, to see I haven't made it up out of thin air!
Really a must read!!!

A true classic5
What can I say? This book is essential reading for anybody who loves music. Period.

A masterpiece in its own right5
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.