A Passion For Music

Music is an accumulation of mediators: instruments, languages, sheets, performers, scenes, media and so on. Learning from music - this art of infinite mediations - allows us to confront sociology with a different way of considering objects. For this task, Hennion draws on aesthetics, art history, science, technology and popular music studies. He shows us that music is a collective process, which must always be performed again and again. As part of that project, he presents a wide-ranging series of case studies, restoring attention to the rich and varied intermediaries through which music is brought to life. This is the first English translation of one of the most important works of French scholarship on music and society.

"Making Music for Life is the adult novice's friend. First, it cheerleads for music's salutary benefits to the music-maker's soul. Then it becomes a useful how-to handbook: finding a teacher and learning how to practice once you have one. How do you hook up with like-minded enthusiasts and what are all the ways you can learn to make music together? How about performing for others? And maybe you will end up teaching others yourself. This useful book is a doorway into the endless joys of making music, for everyone at any age." — Bernard Holland, Music critic emeritus, The New York Times and author of Something I Heard Do you hope to expand your musical circle? Need inspiration and practical ideas for overcoming setbacks? Love music and seek new ways to enjoy it? Roots musician Gayla M. Mills will help you take your next step, whether you play jazz, roots, classical, or rock. You'll become a better musician, learning the best ways to practice, improve your singing, enjoy playing with others, get gigs and record, and bring more music to your community. Most importantly, you'll discover how music can help you live and age well. "A keen road map that supports musicians and the expansion of their craft. Gayla's done the work. All you have to do is step on the path and follow her lead." — Greg Papania, music producer, mixer, composer "Gayla Mills shares the nuts and bolts of fostering one's hidden musical talent. But perhaps most importantly, she shares the power behind music. . . . anyone seeking to awaken their musical passion will find this book ideal." — Dr. Lynn Szostek, psychologist and gerontologist "Making Music for Life absolutely fascinated me. It's beautifully written and engagingly constructed and it helped me better understand why music has remained central to my life. I found it entrancing." — Steve Yarbrough, author of The Unmade World and guitar player "Gayla Mills' precision with language, delight with music, and intrinsic joie de vivre make her the perfect author for Making Music for Life. Everyone who has tapped a foot or hummed along with a band will love this book, and maybe, just maybe, make music a bigger part of their lives." — Charlotte Morgan, author of Protecting Elvis "Gayla Mills shares the nuts and bolts of fostering one's hidden musical talent. But perhaps most importantly, she shares the power behind music. It boosts creativity and reduces stress. It strengthens social bonds, helping us find harmony while resonating with others. From amateur musician to Grammy-winning performer, anyone seeking to awaken their musical passion will find this book ideal." — Dr. Lynn Szostek, psychologist and gerontologist "What better way to counteract boredom, stress, anxiety and even depression than playfully learning a new instrument, singing, jamming, or just learning to hear the pitch, rhythm and timbres of sounds around you. Gayla Mills, in her book, Making Music for Life, offers tips for learning to hear and live life like a musician, while boosting your dopamine and improving cognition at the same time." — Dr. Jodie Skillicorn, psychiatrist "Gayla and I were part of a motley group of musicians who gathered monthly to play and sing. The years passed. My guitar strings rusted; my piano went out of tune. I felt remorse and sadness. But now I realize that I'm the perfect audience for this thoughtful, detailed book, and I'm very thankful she had the vision and heart to write it." — Liz Hodges, author and guitar/piano player "Music can be a powerful part of your life even if it is not your livelihood and Gayla's book Making Music for Life is like a table setting for this magical, mystical, musical table setting of love." — Michael Johnathon, musician and WoodSongs Old-time Radio Hour producer "As a scientist who frequently speaks about the benefits of music on the brain, I'm often asked: is it too late for me? Mills provides a highly readable and practical guide that democratizes music's promise." — Dr. Nina Kraus, Professor, Brainvolts Auditory Neuroscience Lab, Northwestern University

Teaching Music With Passion is a one-of-a-kind, collective masterpiece of thoughts, ideas and suggestions that will surely change the way you teach. Filled with personal experiences, anecdotes and wonderful quotations, this book is an easy-to-read, must-read treasure! -- Back cover.

Solve your problems in the practice room with these ideas for anyone playing a musical instrument. The engaging illustrations present solutions with humor. Stories from master musicians are included to encourage you to have fun with your struggles, and know you're not alone. Ms. Chaffee has compiled smart practice concepts to help people who may not always have access to a private teacher. It is a continuation of lessons for practicing smarter from Becky Chaffee's first book for a young audience, Have Fun with Your Music.

Not so long ago, songs by the Andrews Sisters and Lawrence Welk blasted from phonographs, lilted over the radio, and dazzled television viewers across the country. Lending star quality to the ethnic music of Poles, Italians, Slovaks, Jews, and Scandinavians, luminaries like Frankie Yankovic, the Polka King, and "Whoopee John" Wilfart became household names to millions of Americans. In this vivid and engaging book, Victor Greene uncovers a wonderful corner of American social history as he traces the popularization of old-time ethnic music from the turn of the century to the 1960s. Drawing on newspaper clippings, private collections, ethnic societies, photographs, recordings, and interviews with musicians and promoters, Greene chronicles the emergence of a new mass culture that drew heavily on the vivid color, music, and dance of ethnic communities. In this story of American ethnic music, with its countless entertainers performing never-forgotten tunes in hundreds of small cities around the country, Greene revises our notion of how many Americans experienced cultural life. In the polka belt, extending from Connecticut to Nebraska and from Texas up to Minnesota and the Dakotas, not only were polkas, laendlers, schottisches, and waltzes a musical passion, but they shone a scintillating new light on the American cultural landscape. Greene follows the fortunes of groups like the Gold Chain Bohemians, illuminating the development of an important segment of American popular music that fed the craze for international dance music. And even though old-time music declined in the 1960s, overtaken by rock and roll, a new Grammy for the polka was initiated in 1986. In its ebullience and vitality, the genre endures.

Laura Nyro was a beloved and pioneering singer-songwriter of the 1960s and 1970s, whose songs were covered with great success by the Fifth Dimension; Blood, Sweat & Tears; Three Dog Night; and Barbra Streisand. This first biography from Michele Kort, Soul Picnic, uncovers previously never revealed details, including a love affair with Jackson Browne, and her relationship with painter Maria Desiderio. Unappreciated in her time, Nyro's legacy is currently experiencing a revival. With her groundbreakingly honest and passionate lyrics, her unusual and innovative rhythms and melody, Nyro's influence is still felt by singers and songwriters today.

The #1 New York Times bestseller that has all America talking: as seen/heard on CNN's Fareed Zakaria GPS, Morning Joe, CBS This Morning, The Bill Simmons Podcast, Rich Roll, and more. “The most important business—and parenting—book of the year.” —Forbes “Urgent and important. . . an essential read for bosses, parents, coaches, and anyone who cares about improving performance.” —Daniel H. Pink Shortlisted for the Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award Plenty of experts argue that anyone who wants to develop a skill, play an instrument, or lead their field should start early, focus intensely, and rack up as many hours of deliberate practice as possible. If you dabble or delay, you’ll never catch up to the people who got a head start. But a closer look at research on the world’s top performers, from professional athletes to Nobel laureates, shows that early specialization is the exception, not the rule. David Epstein examined the world’s most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors, forecasters and scientists. He discovered that in most fields—especially those that are complex and unpredictable—generalists, not specialists, are primed to excel. Generalists often find their path late, and they juggle many interests rather than focusing on one. They’re also more creative, more agile, and able to make connections their more specialized peers can’t see. Provocative, rigorous, and engrossing, Range makes a compelling case for actively cultivating inefficiency. Failing a test is the best way to learn. Frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. The most impactful inventors cross domains rather than deepening their knowledge in a single area. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.