Music is said to be the most autonomous and least representative of all the arts. However, it reflects in many ways the realities around it and influences its social and cultural environments. Music is as much biology, gender, gesture - something intertextual, even transcendental. Musical signs can be studied throughout their history as well as musical semiotics with its own background. Composers from Chopin to Sibelius and authors from Nietzsche to Greimas and Barthes illustrate the avenues of this new discipline within semiotics and musicology.

Of all the repertories of Western Art music, none is as explicitly listener-oriented as that of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Yet few attempts to analyze the so-called Classic Style have embraced the semiotic implications of this condition. Playing with Signs proposes a listener-oriented theory of Classic instrumental music that encompasses its two most fundamental communicative dimensions: expression and structure. Units of expression, defined in reference to topoi, are shown here to interact with, confront, and merge into units of structure, defined in terms of the rhetorical conventions of beginning, continuing, and ending. The book draws on examples from works by Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven to show that the explicitly referential, even theatrical, surface of Classic music derives from a play with signs. Although addressed primarily to readers interested in musical analysis, the book opens up fruitful avenues for further research into musical semiotics, aesthetics, and Classicism. Originally published in 1991. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

(Berklee Methods). Learn the essentials of music notation, from fundamental pitch and rhythm placement to intricate meter and voicing alignments. This book also covers the correct way to subdivide rhythms and notate complex articulations and dynamics. An excellent resource for both written and computer notation software!

Whether it's a song by Brahms or by the Boss, a serenade by Mozart or a ballet by John Harbison, music radiates a diverse spectrum of meaningful signs, hidden in plain hearing. To enjoy the interplay of musical signs, it helps to recognize them in the first place. The various iconographic strategies of Audible Signs-including commentary on graphic works, books, poems, and film-yield new appreciations and critiques of composers of vastly divergent styles and technical materials. Author and composer Michael Alec Rose helps readers decode the signs composers give us in their music-sounds that invoke very particular ideas, images, and cultural contexts-and reveals the extraordinary ingenuity with which certain pieces deploy recognizable figures in a musical landscape. None of this can be done systematically. Each artwork reinvents "the code" and demands a unique set of approaches. But the chapters in this invigorating book spring from the same musical ground, where the only thing that matters is to pay attention to the wonders of great music.

Alongside Greil Marcus, Nick Kent, and Lester Bangs, Ian Penman is one of the most important cultural critics of his generation. Long the star writer for Britain's NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS, Penman achieved something few music writers even dream of--he changed the way the subject was written about. VITAL SIGNS is the first collection of his writing.

This pocket-sized dictionary presents current and correct notation practices in an easy-to-use format. Generously illustrated and concise, this book is essential to any musician looking for a handy reference for the correct notation of music. A most welcome and beneficial source for every musician, whether using a pencil or a computer.

Learn to play the fiddle? Easy. Tackling a new instrument can be intimidating, but with this easy-to-use guide, you'll have no trouble at all! From selecting, tuning, and caring for your fiddle to mastering various music styles, Fiddle For Dummies walks you step-by-step through everything you need to start playing the fiddle like a pro. You'll discover how to hold a fiddle, master fundamental techniques, and take your skills to the next level. This title also features companion audio tracks and instructional video clips hosted online at Dummies.com to help further enhance your skills. The fiddle is a popular instrument across many continents, and is a favorite for many because it is small and portable. Playing the fiddle can expose you to a range of musical styles from all over the world, such as Irish, Scottish, Celtic/Cape Breton, country, folk, bluegrass, and more. Plus, if you're already a violin player, you'll impress yourself and fellow musicians as you unlock your instrument to open up a whole new world of sounds. Learn fiddle techniques and fundamentals Select, tune, and care for your fiddle Join the folk instrument movement and master the fiddle Play fiddle music from all over the world Whether you're a complete beginner or a violin player looking to branch out and try something new, Fiddle For Dummies will have you fit as a fiddle in no time.