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The Story of Classical Music

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The Story of Classical Music

By: Darren Henley
Narrated by: Aled Jones
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The lives and music of the great composers of classical music unfold in this entertaining account, introduced by singer and presenter Aled Jones. In 1200 years, classical music grew from the chanting of medieval monks through the symphonies of Beethoven and the grand operas of Wagner to the huge orchestral sound-world of the 21st century, with its electronics and its film music. In his easy-going style, Aled Jones paints vivid portraits of over 80 composers, each one illustrated with some of his, or her, most famous music. This all-encompassing introduction to classical music also includes a wealth of biographical and instrumental information on the CD-ROM element: put CD 4 into the computer and up will come pictures, articles, sheet music, quizzes and more, which will inform and fascinate the whole family.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2004 Naxos AudioBooks (P)2010 Naxos AudioBooks History & Criticism Music Opera
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Editor reviews

This charming compilation is cheerfully hosted by the clear and friendly voice of Marin Alsop, who walks young (and curious adult) listeners through an engaging history of classical music. Alsop's commentary leads and follows ear-pleasing segments of great classical music, briskly recorded masterworks punctuating short biographies and observations. The language is clear and chatty. A wonderful way to learn about the great names and histories of the world's great composers and musical movements.
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Absolutely loved this. Listened while reading the PDF notes as that helped my ADHD brain take it all in. Dopamine hit after hit! Before starting the book I thought I might know a handful of classical tunes and composer’s names, but didn’t realise I’d recognise nearly all of the music in this book! The amount of classical music that we hear on a daily basis still through modern pop culture - especially on TV programmes, adverts, films, sporting events and royal occasions is huge. This has been my favourite audiobook by far, and I will listen to it over and over again. Aled Jones is the perfect narrator too. 10/10.

Binged in one evening

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Listened to this with my children aged between 4 and 15, some with more interest in music than others. Overall we enjoyed this as a whole family. I found myself having more understanding and appreciation of classical music too. I especially liked the chatty nature of the narration and the short chapters, with great use of this being an audio book and being able to actually hear the music being described. Highly recommend this book. Aled Jones was very easy to listen to.

Great introduction to classical music

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Would you consider the audio edition of The Story of Classical Music to be better than the print version?

great way to understand how music has developed. Aled is easy to listen to and the music inserts are fun.

history of music

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Nice narration and covered all the best composers to know with samples of their music.

Perfect summary with great music to listen to

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I have listened to this with my children aged 14, 11 and 7. I would say it is great for the older 2, although my youngest is still a bit young to get the full benefit. We have enjoyed it. It gives a good idea of how the history of classical music fits together, and has helped us fill some of the gaps in our knowledge, in a very pleasant way. I think I could do with a second listening, as I know I still haven't got all of the composers and their works straight!

Thoroughly enjoyed by my children and I

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