The Billboard Encyclopedia Of Music

Containing more than twelve thousand artists from every genre, this comprehensive musical reference furnishes valuable information on each musical form, as well as profiles of musicians, an instrument glossary, a detailed bibliography, and a tutorial on the fundamentals of reading music.

Features an introduction to each period, as well as its key composers, personalities, styles, forms, and instruments.

Classical music finally has the reference it deserves: Authoritative, expertly written, and all-inclusive, "The Billboard Encyclopedia of Classical Music" is a comprehensive, affordable companion to a timeless genre.

Offers a comprehensive look at the history of rock and roll, identifies top groups and performers, and lists albums and ratings

Volumes 3 and 4 of the The Encyclopedia of More Great Popular Song Recordings provides the stories behind approximately 1,700 more of the greatest song recordings in the history of the music industry, from 1890 to today. In this masterful survey, all genres of popular music are covered, from pop, rock, soul, and country to jazz, blues, classic vocals, hip-hop, folk, gospel, and ethnic/world music. Collectors will find detailed discographical data—recording dates, record numbers, Billboard chart data, and personnel—while music lovers will appreciate the detailed commentaries and deep research on the songs, their recording, and the artists. Readers who revel in pop cultural history will savor each chapter as it plunges deeply into key events—in music, society, and the world—from each era of the past 125 years. Following in the wake of the first two volumes of his original Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, this follow-up work covers not only more beloved classic performances in pop music history, but many lesser -known but exceptional recordings that—in the modern digital world of “long tail” listening, re-mastered recordings, and “lost but found” possibilities—Sullivan mines from modern recording history. The Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Volumes 3 and 4 lets the readers discover, and, through their playlist services, from such as iTunes toand Spotify, build a truly deepcomprehensive catalog of classic performances that deserve to be a part of every passionate music lover’s life. Sullivan organizes songs in chronological order, starting in 1890 and continuing all the way throughto the present to include modern gems from June 2016. In each chapter, Sullivanhe immerses readers, era by era, in the popular music recordings of the time, noting key events that occurred at the time to painting a comprehensive picture in music history of each periodfor each song. Moreover, Sullivan includes for context bulleted lists noting key events that occurred during the song’s recording

The Billboard illustrated encyclopedia of jazz & blues is organized chronologically by decade. Each section gives a historical overview plus an A to Z of influential artists and their key recordings.

A comprehensive overview of the history of opera, organized chronologically by era, traces the evolution of the musical art form from the perspective of its social and cultural contexts and offers a detailed study of opera houses, stage and scene aspects, voice, musical techniques, performances, and popular melody as they relate to opera.