Musical Composition

By Reginald Smith Brindle

Book Overview

Musical composition is a key discipline in music programs in conservatories, colleges, and universities. Many teachers consider it as important in the development of young musicians as listening and performance. It can be argued that through compositions musicians achieve the deepest insight into the composer and his music. Musical Composition takes the student through the elements--melody, harmony, counterpoint, and rhythm--before covering a variety of special subjects such as writing vocal and choral music, accompaniments, and film and TV music. Chapters are devoted to recent techniques including free diatonicism, serialism, and indeterminacy. Over 200 examples illustrate points in the text and there are exercises for each chapter.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0193171074
• ISBN13: 9780193171077
• Release Date: November 1986
• Publisher: OUP UK
• Length: 196 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.6" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Good help for intermediate level

Dr. Smith Brindle offers a very usefull text for those who alredy started in composition. This book provides both theory and practice. It's a good choice for one familiared with the main counterpoint and harmonic procedures, as well with a background in Music History.

composition overview

This book is good if you only need to get some ideas about composition techniques in general. It does cover various essential topics and yet nothing is covered in textbook details. I suppose this book is not for learning to compose but for learning what is a composition and how it is actually done in various styles and forms etc., sort of like a reference book or dictionary. So, take it as it's and it's good enough for its purpose.

Good Reference or Manual for Beginning Composers

This book consists of short chapters that treat many compositional styles. It is a fine book, both, for a student composer taking lessons, or a beginner "self-taught" composer (if you are somewhat familiar with European "Classical" music styles (17th - 20th centuries). Also, it is a good reference. Unlike his earlier Serial Composition book, here, Smith Brindle considers many diverse styles; some of them, have much relevance to today's eclectic "compositional scene." I definitely recommend this book.

great read and methodology for novice to advanced composers

I highly recommend this wonderful book. I have used it myself to teach beginning composition lessons, and used it as a reference many times for advanced analysis and composition. It's a real down-to-earth read that can be absorbed quickly while retaining many great composition "rules of thumb". Only a moderate understanding of music theory is needed to grasp concepts within the book. Great exercises in the back of the book.

An excelent book for composers

This book covers almost every aspect that the composers are looking for. It is a book for composers indeed! It's a book of sound roules. Examine the techniques of the 20th century showing exactly how it will sound the work and how the parts will interact as a form.Mr Brindle is a composer and that's why composers will welcome this book. It talk in the same idiom that composers want. It gives the harmonic and composition techniques but it shows the pourpose of it. The roules that he shows are taked from his own impresions and analisis,not from other books of theorics writers.The contemporary techniques(Free pentatonic music,pandiatonicism,impresionism,polytonality, tonal contradiction,interval harmony etc.etc.) are stated very cleverly.It has,also,a chapter devoted to choir writting that explain,as I have never seen before,this technique,and is so good that you think that the choir writting is easy after that.I'm a composer,and I'm always seeking for good boks on the subyect of composition. This one will belong on my library forever.ferreyramarcelo@usa.net