Texas Poet Laureate Walt McDonald has published more than eighteen volumes of poetry. A poet of the landscape, of war and flying, of people just working hard, McDonald is master of the vital image and sound. And his work invites others to define the elements that delight and fascinate. Each contributor herein has made his own trek to McDonald's harsh landscapes of arroyos and hardscrabble, his skies filled with joy and terrors, those night sweats of pilots. Here, in the territory Walt McDonald has claimed, these writers have found gold. Book jacket.

The waltz, perhaps the most beloved social dance of the 19th and early 20th centuries, once provoked outrage from religious leaders and other self-appointed arbiters of social morality. Decrying the corrupting influence of social dancing, they failed to suppress the popularity of the waltz or other dance crazes of the period, including the Charleston, the tango, and "animal dances" such as the Turkey Trot, Grizzly Bear, and Bunny Hug. This book investigates the development of these popular dances, considering in particular how their very existence as "taboo" cultural fads ultimately provided a catalyst for lasting social reform. In addition to examining the impact of the waltz and other scandalous dances on fashion, music, leisure, and social reform, the text describes the opposition to dance and the proliferation of literature on both sides.

A creative self-teaching text, which provides a thorough grounding in the fundamentals of music, this book is essential reading for beginning instrumentalists and vocalists providing a comprehensive musical dictionary, self- instructional theory lessons designed to motivate, and a wealth of historical information.