Genres Books

First, I would like to set the author info straight, Harry Stephens was NOT the Editor of this work, but the AUTHOR.

I received this as a gift and it took me a long time to listen to it. After months, while on a camping trip, I finally popped it into the tape player in our car (what more perfect time for a ghost story!) It was shorter than most audiobooks and the family enjoyed the format, more like a radio show than a book reading.

Since listening to it, I have passed it on to friends to enjoy. I would definitely recommend this audiobook for family and friends. A perfect gift for the holidays, no matter when you decide to celebrate!

This story is so heart-warming. You will enjoy it as well as your family. Sit around the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve and listen to it. It will touch your heart and bring a tear to your eye! This is truly one of those "FEEL GOOD" stories anyone would enjoy at any time of the year.

I am a bzzzagent listening to AUDIOBOOKS and recently received CHILDREN OF THE CANDLELIGHT. This would be a lovely book to listen to with your children, ages 8 on up, around the holidays. I can imagine families listening together in the car on long trips, on the way to and from school or while decorating and baking for the holidays. It is a tear jerker so beware if listening in the car if the driver is sentimental.

A sweet and hear warming story bound to bring families close together.

This is a wonderful Christmastime ghost story and completely different from anything I have heard before. Instead of being used as objects to incite fear or horror, these ghosts are portrayed with gentleness and compassion, and used to beautifully illustrate the need for love and companionship in every human family, and the longing for closure after a tragedy. At only 90 minutes, it is easy to listen to in one sitting, and it has just the right balance of mystery and action to keep you interested without being frustrated. So get comfortable, turn off the phone, and enjoy this wonderful book.

This is a GREAT book for students studying Chopin! As a recent student myself, I wish I would have had this book for general information on Chopin, his life, and his works. The book is laid out in a simple format, making easy for anyone to use. It goes into the styles of his songs and what made them unique. It also includes a CD which the book tells you what and how to listen for things that are specifically Chopin. This book is a must-have for any student studying or performing the works of this master of the piano.

Pair a full-length classical cd from the classical music publisher Naxos with a book surveying Chopin's biography and influences and you have the perfect introduction to Chopin - and a pick recommended not just for public library holdings, but for schools seeking to introduce students to Chopin. Descriptions of his works, styles, and diversity come from a New York-based critical music writer whose addition to the 'Unlocking the Masters' series provides newcomers with a most accessible way of understanding Chopin's music.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

These small books from Amadeus concentrate on one composer, one of the masters. In these books a brief biography (25 or so pages) set the tone for a discussion of the man's music. In the case of Chopin, this can be summed up as a case of being considered a musical genius at a very early age, followed by increasing fame as a composer even as he was spending years dying from tuberculosis.

In the sections on the music, an expert author describes what the best consensus of our time is saying about the works. In the case of Chopin these are broken down into the types of works: Etudes and Preludes, Music for Piano and orchestra, The Waltzes, The Nocturnes, The Sonatas, Patriotism and Tragedy: The Polonaises, Individual works, The Impromptus and Scherzos, The Mazurkas, and The Ballades.

A CD included with the book contains fifteen complete compositions of Chopin's works. Having the CD with the book means that the author can refer to the music in his writing knowing that you will have exactly the music he is discussing. This is a great concept that adds imeasurably to the book.

Amadeus Press has filled a underserved niche in the classical music literature with these marvelous little guides to the great composers and their greatest compositions. They fill the gap between the highly detailed, scholarly volumes of the lives of the great composers ... and the too-superficial tiny guides that offer too little program notes on the music or the composer. It gives you a compelling "play-by-play" description of each composition without venturing into musicology that would lose a beginner. The entire series is extremely well written and make a great guides to new discoveries. It should appeal to beginners as well as classical veterans alike. This Chopin volume is proving to be a valuable guide as I explore in depth Chopin's music and the great performances on disc.

Every major category is covered in satisfying depth to give you solid understanding of what is behind each work - and what in particular is historically and musically significant in them. ALl major works are covered: the lilting Waltzes .. the pensive and sometimes turbulent Nocturnes ... the weighty Sonatas, Scherzos and Ballades ... the delicate miniatures ... the amazing early piano concertos ... the showpieces, Etudes, Preludes and even the few chamber pieces of Chopin are explored to reveal many curious historic details.

This volume on Chopin makes for compelling reading and is one of the only modern volumes of program notes on the piano music of Chopin I could find. The number of works covered is large and satisfying with enough detail to give you a deep appreciation of the significance, musical structures and impact of each work. In a way, it reads much like program notes in a CD, but covering the entire range of Chopin's life and works. Other reviews below outline the range covered. The volume, supplemented by classic volume like Schonberg's "Lives of the Great Composers" should give a high quality education to the music of Chopin. This book includes a Naxos CD containing performances by Idl Bieret which gives a quality intro to Chopin, but some listeners will surely want to explore the great Chopin performances of pianists like Rubinstein, Horowitz, Kissin, Perahia, Argerich and many others. Bottom line: these "Unlocking the Masters Series" are a great investment to deepening one's appreciation that will not go out of style any time soon. 5 stars.

I bought this book for the 22nd Anniversary of when I did this show. This the best tool for anyone that needs research for this show. It is on target in terms of tempos, dialogue etc.

A Chorus Line Sheet music is great to have if your like me and love the show, and love to sing. I love all the music in the show and it's fun to sing out of. And if you don't like to sing but like to play an instrument, get this music! You won't be upset you did!

As arrangements of Broadway shows go, this book is pretty good. All pieces are in the correct key (far too often, popular sheet msuic is deliberately transposed into the wrong key to prevent people from singing them properly), and the arrangements are a good take on the actual orchestral score. It's a fairly challenging arrangement; beginners should NOT buy this music as they will be extremely frustrated.

However, I cannot give this book 5 stars since several songs are truncated. Only one version of "One" is included, it is not the "rehearsal" version (where the actors recite dance steps and count the beat as they learn the song) but the finale, yet verse 4, with the fantastic 4-part harmony, is not included. "Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen" was cut down to only the introduction, leaving out the fantastic montage of character stories sung through this four-part number. (The new Chorus Line cast CD, from the 1975 version, has almost 15 minutes of material from this recurring song.) "The Music and the Mirror" omits the extended music for Cassie's mirror dance, only including the singing.

If you want absolutely every shred of music from the show, you should look at the Vocal Score instead. That book is 224 pages of every bit incidental music, lead-ins, all verses, and codas. If you just want to play or sing a few of the songs for the show and you are comfortable with a moderately difficult arrangement, this is the right book to buy.

NOTE: There is something wrong with Amazon's handing of this product. This review is appearing for both the VOCAL SCORE product and the PIANO/VOCAL/GUITAR product. This is probably the same bug giving the wrong "Look Inside" information for the vocal score. However, if you buy the piano/vocal/guitar version, they will ship you the correct product.

This isn't "sheet music" for the songs on the cast album, this is the ENTIRE vocal score. This is a reduction rather than an arrangement; the full orchestral score was reduced to one piano with a number of extra notes added showing where you would throw in other instruments. This is more difficult and comprehensive than the "Piano/Vocal/Guitar" arrangement, also sold by the same publisher. But go ahead and try those challenging notes, because look what you get!

*Every* piece of incidental music in the show is included here. That means all the lead-ins to songs, not just the songs themselves. That means all the spoken cues to start the music. The filler songs "And" and "The Tap Combination" are included. The full version of "Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen" is here. Both versions of "One" are here for your enjoyment; the "rehearsal" version (where the actors recite the dance steps, count the beat, and sing the song in a brilliant 4-part arrangement) and the finale used for curtain calls (which includes the countermelody "She walks into a room..." that turns into a terrific interwoven melody for verse 3, followed by fantastic 4-part harmony reprise in verse 4).

The 96-page "sheet music" (Hal Leonard SBN: 088188068X) does not have any of this detail. It features the same pieces in the cast album but only one version of One, which skips both the rehearsal thoughts and the final verse with harmony. It also severely truncates such great hits such as Hello Twelve (which has four parts) and "The Music and the Mirror" (which has an extended musical section where Cassie does her mirror dance). The Vocal Score, this product right here, has ALL that detail.

Don't be confused by the incorrect "look inside" for this product. It shows the identical contents of the Piano/Vocal/Guitar version I mentioned above, and that is NOT what you get with the Vocal Score. It really is over 200 pages of material, and that's why it costs so much more. And it is WORTH IT.

If you just want to play a few of your favorite songs from the show, buy the shorter, easier, and less expensive version. But if you want to capture every element of Marvin Hamlisch's score, if you just love everything about this show and want to recapture the music, THIS is the one to buy.

NOTE: There is something wrong with Amazon's handing of this product. This review is appearing for both the VOCAL SCORE product and the PIANO/VOCAL/GUITAR product. This is probably the same bug giving the wrong "Look Inside" information for the vocal score. However, if you buy the vocal score, they will ship you the correct product.

Actually, this is not a book, but a tape of her self titled debut CD! It is an amazing piece of material and I truly hope that you buy it! I would suggest buying it on CD myself, but if you only have a tape player, why not? Her first two songs off the CD do not even begin to express her vocal talent. Her next single, I Turn To You (due April 6th) is probably one of the best songs showcasing her amazing voice! Buy this tape now!

being a diehard christina fan i love all books about her.but i really liked this one.i felt it gave good information about her career and her life.i love the photos and in all i really enjoyed the book.i'd recomend this book to all people who love christina or people who would liek to learn more about her.because she is a wonderful singer and a great person!

This is absolutely an incredible album. Christina Aguilera's vocal ability is purely astonishing. She is the new Mariah Carey out there. This is definetely an album worth buying!

First and foremost, THIS IS NOT A BIO OF CHRISTINA AGUILERA, IT IS SHEET MUSIC! If you are looking for a bio of Christina, try Molly MacDermont's, it's informative and a quick read.

This is a nicely put-together collection of Christina's songs, all bound up in a beautiful color introduction book. This includes all of her songs from her debut disc, including hits such as "What A Girl Wants," "Reflection," "Genie In A Bottle," "I Turn to You" and the original (no rap) "Come On Over." It also has some wonderful non-single tracks like "When You Put Your Hands on Me" and Christina's favorite of the album, the soulful "Obvious."

While I have several of these books for different artists (BSB, *NSYNC, Britney Spears, Mariah Carey and of course Christina), this is perhaps the most stunning because this one includes an introduction from the man who "discovered" Christina. It's very informative and a wonderful source of info for hardcore fans like myself.

Some of the songs are excellent (if a bit on the difficult level), while other lack proper keys, there are several obvious mistakes in this book, and a few not-so obvious.

If nothing else, it's a wonderful guide to her lyrics and vocal arrangements and an informative behhind the scenes look at the album, the song selections, and the fun of putting it together! A must for any fan.

This is a great book from a person's point of view regarding many of my favorite bands. I am not completely done reading it but I like it so far.

This book is amazing. You want to know about female artists in the indie/punk scene? Read this book. This book has tons of information on every female artist in the underground. It's fabulous and well-written and is a good read. I didn't think that I would read this book all the way through, and would just read the chapters about artists that interested me, but I ended up reading it from cover to cover and loving it all the way. I learned so much from this, the background of the groups, stories about the girls, tons and tons of stuff. If you want to know more and read a really great book, I definitely recomend this!

Raha's book is pretty good but has some flaws nevertheless. The author seems to be too harsh on non-indie musicians, as if nothing of any worth has ever come from any of them.
Also, she seems to be trying to write objectively, but her opinions and tastes come through in her writing sometimes. Just as an example, she doesn't seem to be too fond of Bikini Kill's music(maybe that's just my impression but she seems to feel the need to justify their technical flaws, despite the fact that they weren't any worse than many bands in this book, let alone in punk in general, and the fact that technical aptitude is far from being extremely important in punk. There seem to be some omissions as well, among them neglecting to mention how Mia Zapata of the Gits died and how it affected the community. Still, if that's in order to concentrate on her life instead of her death, then omitting the information was a good decision.
Despite all its flaws, the book is very informative and serves as a great testament to some of the amazing punk/indie women of the past and present, who, despite their talents, efforts(in many cases both musical and activist) and influence, constantly get overlooked in most punk/indie chronicles.

Readers interested in punk rock music in general and women's contributions to the genre in particular will relish Cinderella's Big Score: Women Of The Punk And Indie Underground, a tribute to punk rock's female artists. Maria Raha works for Spin and Vibe magazines: her focus on the U.S. and English punk rockers of the 1970s and 80s details how women influenced groups of the times, and beyond. Recording history influence and background blends with details on the lives and contributions of major female musicians and groups.

An outstanding script from an outstanding musical.

When I saw it in London many years ago, the production's days were already numbered, even though the house was packed and the audience in raptures. I could not understand why it was not a massive hit. I still can't.

I already had a cd of the music; it's good to relive the twists and turns of the plot and the hard-boiled wisecracks.

If you never saw it on stage, you really missed out. A must for fans of detective fiction, film noir or just good music.

I first heard of City of Angels after hearing Anthony Warlow's recoridng of 'You're Nothing Without Me'. I bought the CD to hear more from the musical. I instantly fell in love with the soundtrack, then sought the libretto to find out what happens in between.

As soon as I started reading this, i couldn't put it down. I had no idea what to really expect, and it's the first book that i've laughed out loud while reading.

In this book, you get Larry Gelbart's words and David Zippel's lyrics. The best way to compliment this book is to also get the OB Cast Recording to really get a feel for Cy Coleman's wonderful music.

Not to be confused with the recent Cage/Ryan flick, this book is the libretto of a little-known musical with music by Cy Coleman ("Sweet Charity", "The Life"), book by Larry Gelbart ("A Funny Thing...", "Tootsie"), and lyrics by David Zippel (Disney's "Hercules" and "Mulan"). "City of Angels" won the 1989 Tony Award for Best Musical and is the story of a detective novelist named Stine and the perils he encounters while trying to adapt his novels for the silver screen. In the play, scenes about Stine (in color) are juxtaposed with scenes about his private-eye creation, Stone (in black and white). Besides building some genuine film noir detective-mystery suspense, the musical offers an insightful commentary on how art imitates life, and vice versa. Unfortunately, one misses out on the marvelous jazz-infected music that accompanies the adventures of Stine and Stone if one merely reads the libretto, so grab a copy of one of the cast recordings (Broadway or London) as well!

When City of Angels premiered on Broadway in 1989, it ran for fewer than 1000 performances. When you read this libretto, which you absolutely must do if you like musical theatre at all, you'll wonder why it isn't running today. The book is full of wit, and is incredibly funny and biting as it satirizes Hollywood movie-making. The stage directions keep you fully abreast of what's going on (even if you've never seen a show), and they allow you to easily keep track of where the action is happening. The only thing missing from this wonderful volume is, of course, the great music that goes with the song. All the more reason to buy the OCR of the show and listen to it at the same time! City of Angels is a great musical, and one you'll enjoy reading (and listening to!) time and time again.

Nice book, lots of great photos! Top-notch compilation of pics from BG. The photos capture the mood and energy of the time. To all aficionados: Not to be missed.

This is just about the finest book there is on the almighty Clash, the only one that can really make you feel, if only for a white hot moment, that you're *there* while the band bashes out its masterpieces less than a dozen feet away, in some dank forgotten club a quarter century ago. You're so close for a second that you can read the phrases stenciled on Joe's military garb, count the zippers on Simmo's trousers, or feel the sweat from Jonesy's unshorn locks splashing on your face, not to mention the gob of a thousand punks flying over your head. And look who's in the crowd with you! Lester Bangs, Debbie Harry, Andy Warhol (altho' he's probably ligging about backstage), Martin Scorsese, that young ne'er-do-well of the NYC scene Harley Flanagan, even Johnny Thunders has stopped by on his way to cop.Man, could the Clash dress: from the Pollock-esque/Sex shop/Teddy/Rude boy of the early years, to the "collars-up mate"/perfect quiff & creepers days of 'London Calling,' to the quasi-military/cop fatigues of the final era. Check out the guys in an American supermarket, Joe counting out his "Yankee dollar"; or hanging out in Bob Gruen's NYC apartment watching NY Dolls' videos; or goofing off, in full rock leathers, at various airports round the globe. Really, please, and with all sincerity, can I go back and just *be* with those guys, come on, huh, please, just for a minute or two?But I can't, and you can't, and this book (along with Johnny Green's 'A Riot of Our Own' memoir) is the closest we're gonna get in these sore days. Bob Gruen's stunning, intimate, exhilirating photos over six years of the Clash's career are second to none, revealing them in all their raging glory. So open the book, grab a Guiness, blast the tunes, and relive the true punk era, and thank your lucky stars, bittersweet that they may be, that there was never any reunion. This is the best you're gonna get.

Rock photographer Bob Gruen does not fail to deliver one of the best rock photo books I have ever seen. Every Clash fan must get this book immediately! Pages and pages of never before seen Clash photos, including the boys in between shows, pics with family members, etc. An absolute masterpiece of a book. Excellent work Bob!

This book is fantastic! Although it may seem a bit expensive at first, it pays for itself and then some! It has some of the more common Clash photographs in it, but it is also loaded with rare ones. The pictures are big and clear, and captions are given on many of them by The Clash, Bob Gruen, and others associated with them. It's really cool to get their take on it, and you get some background stories too. I can't reccommend it more highly.

Tiene 6 lecciones completas de ballet; pero son para niveles avanzados; y están muy bien explicadas; y las fotos ayudan mucho

Once you get to grips with the (Bolshoi) excercises being described in measures rather than counts it's a wonderful resource for the serious teacher and adolescent student. There are lots of clear(if old fashioned) photos: Plisetskya and a young Maximova included. This book should be on every ballet teacher's bookshelf, along with theory books relating to Cecchetti, Kirov and English schools of training... A serious book for passionate bookworms like me.

CLASSES IN CLASSICAL BALLET has long been a classic out of print, so its reappearance after thirty years makes it a 'must' acquisition for any serious dance or ballet collection. Author Asef Messerer is a celebrated dancer and teacher, the founder of the Bolshoi school of ballet, and here provides six of his classes with notes, positions and steps illustrated by nearly 500 black and white photos of principal Bolshoi dancers. Teachers and dancers will find it a top instructional pick.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This book is not for a beginner. It contains six virtuosic ballet classes by the great Bolshoi teacher, Asef Messerer, uncle and teacher of Maya Plisetskaya. The classes are abundantly illustrated followed by a section on Bolshoi Theatre Artists in performance including those of Asef Messerer himself.

This book brings back a lot of memories and is full of classic photos of some classic performers. Mark Lawhon's photographic style seems to capture the music and the moment and freeze it in time.

From Ambrosia to Yes, Lawhon distills the drama and passion of live performances of musical giants through his camera lens. I was a mere pup in the 1970s and didn't attend my first rock concert until the mid-1980s, so it was nice to be able to see all the pics of 1970s bands.

What a wonderful book to review the bands and music I enjoyed so much in the 1970's! The photography is excellent, the shots clear and colorful! How it can take you right there! It is also filled with "insider" information about what was going on with our pop and rock idols of the time as they came through the midwest. Don't miss this! It's an opportunity to become privy to part of the world we loved so much growing up!

Super book that was very interesting. View point from a small town midwest attitude. Very fresh approach.

I really enjoy this book. Has some of the alltime favs included.

What? You play ragtime and you don't own this book YET? Think of it. 81 rags for how much? As an experienced ragtime artist, who got this book when it first came out in the 1970s, I can tell you that not only will it be a great start to your ragtime collection, but it will give you a foundation for the absolute best of piano ragtime. While you won't find ALL of Joplin's rags, nor a complete listing of those by Lamb and Scott, you will still see the core of what made them so notable. Hidden gems are the five Pastime Rags by Artie Matthews, works by pioneer Tom Turpin, and many solid rags from lesser-known composers like Clarence Woods. On eBay, should you find all of these pieces, you would easily spend over [what I expcted to] on the Joplin, Lamb, and Scott rags alone. Instead, it's less than 25¢ per piece. So what are you waiting for! Get it now! Also, look at other books edited by Dave Jasen. They constitute a great way to build a solid ragtimelibrary with little repetition.

There are a fair number of books on the market with ragtime sheet music in them. This is the one I've used the most over the years, since despite its quirks it's the best way of getting a hold of a generous amount of period ragtime, in unedited form.

About that "unedited form". The book photographically reproduces the original sheet music verbatim. This has its downside: the original music companies printed things in a quick'n'dirty manner, & while the sheet music from Stark (Joplin, Lamb, Scott, &c) is usually well-presented & carefully set, some of the other music is sprinkled with errors & eccentricities, especially the tunes by Charles Hunter. However, I'd rather have the typos--easily fixed--than have some meddling editor tidy up the text. Editions of these tunes by people like Max Morath tend to have a fair bit of editorial interference, & I'd much rather see what the tunes looked like without that kind of filtering.

Dover also prides itself on historically accurate reprints. This means that you get the original cover art.....which is as you'd imagine often pretty offensive by modern standards in its depiction of African-Americans. Still, it's just as well to be reminded of the historical conditions of this music's creation and dissemination. -- What's more irritating & less justifiable about the decision to include cover art is that it completely throws off the pagination. Since each piece is typically 4 pages long, adding the cover art makes for 5 pages--so that every second piece has its page turns in exactly the wrong place. This isn't a minor quibble: often the page turns are as a result placed in the middle of repeats, at key moments in the score, &c. Dover ought to have added some blank pages to keep the rectos & versos in the right sequence.

Anyway, enough caviling. What you get is an enormous pile of Joplin--nice, but that's easily enough available elsewhere. But you get a huge selection of work by most of the other really interesting figures of the period. I think Blesh's concept of "Classic Ragtime" is a crock, an attempt to make polemical distinctions between high art & popular trash in a genre where such distinctions are hard to make. & what does the idiosyncratic, rather naive music of Charles Hunter have to do with the sophisticated creations of Joplin or Artie Matthews anyway? Anyway, it's great to have all this stuff here--pieces by Robert Hampson, Hunter, Charles L Johnson, Joplin, Joe Jordan, Joe Lamb, Arthur Marshall, Matthews, Scott, Charles Thompson, Tom Turpin, Percy Wenrich, Clarence Woods. I've spent years working through the book.

Fans of this book, by the way, should check out Trebor Tichenor's two volumes of ragtime rarities for Dover--these include some terribly obscure stuff along with lesser-known Scott & Lamb pieces, & is very much worth exploring if you're curious about the genre.

It is pretty hard. Wouldn't be good for a beginner. I suppose it would be good for an advanced student. Good songs in it.