LibGuides: music history I Tim Crain: Background

Reference Books from Literati

Need more background information about Music History but don't have time to go to the library? UMass Lowell Libraries gives you access to these full-text electronic reference books through Literati. Click here for a short tutorial about what else is available through Literati.

Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia: A Comprehensive Guide to the World of Opera
This book aspires to be at once a guide to the world of opera and a compendium of information specifically related to the Metropolitan Opera, its history, repertory, and performers.
The Harvard Biographical Dictionary of Music
A guide to the thousands of characters, from humble artisan to lofty genius, who people the unfolding history of music, this volume brings together all the pertinent biographical information about composers, performers, music theorists, and instrument makers from the days of praise chants to the bop and pop of today.
The Harvard Dictionary of Music
Wide ranging and reliable, this treasure trove includes entries on all the styles and forms in Western music; comprehensive articles on the music of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Near East; descriptions of instruments enriched by historical background; and articles that reflect today's beat, including popular music, jazz, and rock.
The New Penguin Dictionary of Music
Succinct and comprehensive guide to the history, forms, and personalities of classical music. Readers will find biographies of thousands of composers from Albinoni to Zappa, with in-depth treatment of major figures, coverage of individual works, including plot summaries of operas and ballets, articles on the history of music and instruments, entries on musical forms, from medieval plainchant to contemporary minimalism, and clear definitions of technical terms and jargon.

Composers and Musicians

Hildegard of Bingen (1098 - 1179)
From The Harvard Biographical Dictionary of Music: Born into the German nobility but early entrusted to the church: a novice at age 8, a nun at 15, a mother superior from 1136, founder of a monastery (Rupertsberg) near Bingen between 1147 and 1150 and of a daughter house nearby, ca. 1165. MORE
Machaut, Guillaume de (c. 1300 - ?1377)
From The Encyclopaedia of the Renaissance: Probably born in Reims, Machaut entered the service of John of Luxembourg, King of Bohemia, in around 1323, and was his secretary until the king's death at Crécy (1346). MORE
Josquin Desprez (c. 1440 - 1521)
From The Harvard Biographical Dictionary of Music: Although his association with Condé may extend back to before 1477, a document found there indicates that he registered with the authorities as an alien shortly before his death, and thus was born in France. MORE
Claudio Monteverdi (1567 - 1643): Topic Page
Composer, born in Cremona, N Italy. A proficient violist, he learned the art of composition in Cremona, publishing a set of three-part choral pieces at the age of 15. MORE
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Topic Page
German composer and organist; one of the greatest and most influential composers of the Western world. He brought polyphonic baroque music to its culmination, creating masterful and vigorous works in almost every musical form known in his period. MORE
George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Topic Page
English composer, b. Halle, Germany. Handel was one of the greatest masters of baroque music, most widely celebrated for his majestic oratorio Messiah. MORE

music history I Tim Crain

Reference Books from Literati

Composers and Musicians

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