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1994 |
94-2-292
1994. - VIII, 220 p. - ISBN 3-9803691-0-2 : DM 19.80
A sloppy and confused foreword does little to inspire confidence that this directory of music institutions in the three German-speaking countries will prove very handy. How such a book, with listings for only two music libraries and addresses of publishers without summaries of what they publish, may seriously be termed a reference resource would seem something of a mystery. One hopes for greater editorial oversight in future offerings from this publisher. [rn/mg]
94-2-295
Subjects. - 1994. - 342 p. - ISBN 3-7649-2540-X : DM 58.00 Persons. - 1994. - 272 p. - ISBN 3-7649-2541-8 : DM 44.00
These volumes amount to a thoroughly reworked third edition of the 1984 ed., which was published under the title Lexikon der Musikpädagogik. The majority of the articles are new, and the list of terms revised. On the whole this is a well conceived and thoughtful publication, although it occasionally loses focus. Two-thirds of the articles on program music for instance, provide historical and theoretical clarification of the concept, leaving one-third to discuss pedagogical implications or relevance. In other cases, didactic significance fails to be adduced (e.g., the organ) or is merely hinted at (music ethnology). Nor can one avoid the question of whether the subjects here examined are not just as well covered in more general music lexica. Still, this remains the only substantive criticism of a highly useful reference tool. [rn/mg]
94-2-296
From now on the largely reworked eighth edition of "Wörner" will take its place on the shelf as the standard work of its kind. A new edition of the volume that had previously retained much the same format and style of its original 1954 incarnation has been badly needed for some time. This is no mere facelift: desultory material has been expunged, shifts in historical method and ideology have been noted, and Western music since 1945 has been newly integrated. The structure of the narrative, too, has changed from Wörner's primarily genre-governed organization to one that subordinates discussion of individual genres and their evolution under larger categories of historical period. Disappointing (and puzzling), however, is the inconsistent access to terms and concepts through the index. Wörner's Geschichte der Musik remains the useful prose compilation of facts, names, dates, and historical synthesis it has always been, and will continue to be reached for by students cramming for their university exams! [rn/mg]
94-2-297
Anton Schermar (1604-81) bequeathed to the public library of the German city of Ulm a library containing, among much else, some 36 printed and 12 manuscript volumes of music. The specialist in archives and the bibliographic description of music Clytus Gottwald provides a "thematic" catalogue (with incipits), information where appropriate or possible on concordances, RISM citations, and references to relevant secondary literature. This is all amply prefaced with technical and source-critical material (instrumentarium, datings, watermarks). [rn/mg]
94-2-298
The title is misleading: this is not a travel guide. Nor will readers glean very much on the relationship between the music and the topography of the 23 "music centers" presented for discussion. An example of Engler's feuilleton-like style, on Paganini, a native of Genoa: "His grave . . . lies in Parma, the larger portion of his autograph manuscripts in a Roman library. The house where he was born was leveled during renovations of the old city" (p.74). A bit of biography, a few anecdotes, some black-and-white illustrations of mainly atmospheric -- as opposed to informative -- value. A nice witty travel lecture, nothing more. [rn/mg]
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