Contains in a single volume The First Book of the Musicians, The Second Book of the Great Musicians, and The Third Book of the Great Musicians. A stimulating introduction to the major composers, the music they wrote, and the instruments they used. For each of the two dozen composers included, the author secures the reader's interest by first relating stories of his childhood, then introducing representative pieces of his music, selected for appeal on first hearing. The reader is led on step by step to develop his listening skills, often through games of the author's invention. As he is ready to learn more about various aspects of musical form and its development, a chapter appears explaining just that. With the author taking special care to show how the paths of the different musicians intertwine and how supportive they are of each other, it seems as if he is inviting the reader to join the musical community and equipping him to be an appreciative listener, if not a musician himself.

At the beginning of this third volume, Brahms and Franck join the ranks of composers from Europe introduced so far in this series, most of whom had their roots in Germany, Italy, France, and Austria. Next our attention is drawn to Russian music and Tchaikovsky, as a representative of that tradition, and lastly to Britain with special focus on Arne, Bennett, and Parry. An especially interesting chapter on the use of music in Shakespeare is included, along with a history of keyboard instruments. As in the other volumes, each chapter concludes with some thought-provoking questions and ideas of things to do to deepen appreciation of the reading.

A further course in music appreciation, introducing the composers Schubert, Field, Mendelssohn, and Debussy by the same methods as used in the first volume of this series, then moving on to the major focus of this second book, which is on dramatic forms that have a musical component and musical forms that have a dramatic component. Starting with miracle plays and masques, the narrative then turns to oratorios, and operas. In connection with the latter, Wagner and Verdi, both masters of the operatic form, are profiled, along with Sullivan, who in partnership with Gilbert produced the comic operas for which they are so well known. A section on military music is also included, featuring the instruments on display in army bands.