Worlds of Music: An Introduction to the Music of the World's Peoples

Worlds of Music is a unique introduction to ethnomusicology, the ideal text with which to experience and understand the meanings of music in the lives of diverse human communities. Writing about cultures they have studied at first hand, the authors describe and analyze the indigenous musics of Africa, North and South America, Eastern Europe, India, Indonesia, and Japan. They also show how ethnomusicologists "get inside" a culture to document its music. Free from excessive jargon and assuming no formal musical background, Worlds of Music conveys the excitement of ethnomusicology by focusing in depth on the music of a small number of representative groups; looks at music both on its own terms and as a human activity in diverse historical, social, and cultural contexts; features fascinating biographies and oral histories of musicians in diverse cultures; includes many original photographs, drawings, and transcriptions of musical examples; and encourages active student involvement by showing how a beginner may document, play, and even build the instruments used in the music of another culture.