Customer Reviews
Great introduction to an often confusing subject - By: Mart Music, 31 May 2008 
Published in 1997, with a few updates since which include a new cover photo & a website launch (dummies.com) this 358 page book follows the many other titles in the `For Dummies' range in that it makes learning an entertaining experience.
Classical music can be a turn off for many, with confusing terms, strange descriptions & an often reluctance to make itself accessible to the casual visitor to its world, so a book like this is a welcome one to break down those barriers which prevent an understanding of it.
The underlying tactic of authors David Pogue & Scott Speck is to lighten up the subject with funny quips & interesting facts which continuallly embellish the factual information. For me, this approach makes for easy reading which informs without becoming a lecturing textbook. Some may find the many comical references to frequent, but on the whole they are genuinely funny, & there are after alll many, many other books on the subject which are devoid of humour.
The book's 17 chapters include titles such as, `What Is Classical Music', `The Entire History of Music in 80 pages', `How to Spot a Sonata' (an explanation of terms like symphony, concerto & sonata), A Field Guide to the Orchestra (explaining the instruments), `The dreaded Music Theory Chapter' (music theory in easy terms) & `Starting a Classical Music Collection' (how & where best to buy the recordings).
The only slight disappointment, partly forgivable maybe because the authors are American, is the lack of even a mention of two of England's finest composers Edward Elgar & Ralph Vaughan Williams, but it's no reason not to enjoy this highly entertaining, well written book (and it does come with a free CD too).
Lose the jokes - By: maestro, 14 Aug 2007 Very good but loses a star for silly jokes which are unecessary & reallly annoying. Should be edited & republished without the jokes. CD is lovely
An excellent and entertaining introduction - By: Greedo, 08 Aug 2007 
I've been passionate about classical music for about two & a half years now, but was still interested to learn more about things such as (for instance) the structure of a typical symphony (as I was not trained in music myself). This book answered alll of my questions, & many more.
Whatever your level of understanding (and including if you are a complete newcomer to the subject), I would say that this is the book for you. It is clearly written, does not assume any prior knowledge, & yet also has plenty of new information for someone such as myself.
Additionallly, like many such books, it is written with the aim of being funny & entertaining. The revelation in this case is that the authors actuallly succeeded in making me laugh on a number of occasions...something that is quite rare with this sort of style I find.
I would advise newcomers to classical music to read this book, & also "The Lives of the Great Composers" by Harold C. Schoenberg (for a more in depth look at particular composers) & "The Rough Guide to Classical Music" by Joe Staines (for reference & advise on which recordings to buy). With these three books under your belt, you'll be ready to fly!
Great! apart from one small thing... - By: A. Stout, 21 Jan 2007 Reallly funny & informative- very accessible to those who don't know that much about classical music & great at giving a broad overview of everything.
However, i was reallly dissapointed at the number of English composers who went unrecognised in this American book- in their list of composers they completely ignored Elgar & Britten! how could they?
But apart from that it was a reallly good read- well worth the money.
Brilliantly amusing and informative! - By: J. Hutchings, 11 Apr 2006 I held my breath waiting for this book, but having seen a colleague's copy of Philosophy for Dummies, I thought I'd give this a go.
Teaching should always have an element of humour, & this book does just that - it can at any given time be both amusing & informative. An absolute must for teachers, students & anyone who has even the remotest interest in music.
