The History of Classical Music

This excellent value is a great journey from the origins of classical music through the present day. There are tons of great musical illustrations, and each period and sub-genre of classical music is treated in a balanced, excellent manner. This work is great for those wanting to learn about great music, and for those whose rooms are filled with records and CD's (like mine!). I recommend this in opposition to 'The History of Opera' by the same author. 5 stars!

Among my top three Audiobooks, "History" is a concise-yet-complete overview of the development and evolution of classical music. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, an authority on classical music...and this book was a wonderful overview. There is enough music to gain an appreciation for the school while also illustrating the transition from one era to the next.

I have listened to this at least five times and can imagine listening another five. I highly recommend the book to anyone with even a passing interest in classical music.

When I have trouble going to sleep, I turn on my computer and hook up my good speakers, and listen to this history. It is like a review of western civ. with music in the background. Instead of lying awake, I learn something, and I fall asleep. If you are feeling frustrated with the everyday grind, the beautiful music and the celebration of human achievement will give you a peace of mind.

This audio-book was perfect as a general review or an intro to further studies in Music History. Some strange selections of "important musicians" and some odd selections of music but overall fairly interesting. Reads a little like liner- notes, and is somewhat textbook-ish in tone.

Very enjoyable, and still informative without being superficial. Short enough to be entertaining, yet mentioning most, if not all the different streams of classical music worth knowing. Recommended.

This is probably best suited for musicians and those more familiar with musical terminology. Nonetheless I learned some things that I didn't know before, and the music was beautiful.

I don't doubt that there is much good information here. But, for a non-musician, a person interested in better understanding the music, I found the music snippets way too short and the monologue way too long.
Before I listened to "The History of Classical Music", I listened to "The Story of Classical Music". The latter was much more interesting and attuned to my level of knowledge, though it was written for children. I was hoping "The History" would be the next step in my education. But, alas, it was not for me.

It wesvery good except the clips were a little short and I did not learn a great deal. As an introduction to music appreciation, it is a good start.

Yes, because the audio edition has the distinct advantage of inline samples from important pieces being discussed, which makes it interactive in a way that a print version (even one that includes a CD with samples) cannot be.

Since this was a historical survey, it's hard to choose a favorite character! But I did enjoy learning about the Red Priest, Giuseppe Verdi.

Experience pronouncing the sometimes difficult foreign words.

No, I enjoyed the episodic nature, though I found some of the chapters to be rather long (upwards of an hour), which made it difficult to put down when I needed to do something else!

I'd make sure to download this in High Quality, since it includes orchestral samples that would be less satisfying in a more muffled/lower-quality setting.

The narrator has a wonderful british accent and is so smooth and easy to listen to. History of music makes you want to go into more detail. 5 hours is just not enough. Wish it were longer.