Origins of the Popular Style: The Antecedents of Twentieth-Century Popular Music / Edition 1

by Peter van der Merwe

Overview

This is an analysis of popular music from a musical, as opposed to a sociological, biographical or political point of view. The author surveys Western popular music in all its forms - blues, ragtime, music hall, waltzes, marches, parlour ballads and folk music - and uncovers the common musical language which unites these disparate styles. The book examines the split between classical and popular Western music in the 19th and early 20th centuries, shedding light on the serious music of the time. With musical illustrations ranging from Strauss waltzes to Mississippi blues and from the Middle Ages to the 1920s, the author lays bare the tangled roots of the popular music of today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198163053
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	08/27/1992
Series:	Clarendon Paperbacks
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	366
Product dimensions:	9.52(w) x 5.88(h) x 0.79(d)
Lexile:	1310L (what's this?)

Editorial Reviews

"Will have reprecussions not only on the study of popular music, but on those debates about cultural identity which are centred on blues and jazz....The range of scholarship here is extraordinary and, in its combination of available materials, unprecedented....A major intervention in the study of American popular music, and should be known not only to musicians and musicologists, but to anyone interested in the sociology of American culture."—Journal of American Studies

"Exposes many fascinating facets of popular music and provides a clear insight into jazz' formative years."—JazzTimes

"Contains a wealth of ingenious speculations....He seems to have an uncanny knack for drawing out musical patterns from an extraordinaryly diverse repertory....Anyone interested in exploring the musical syntax of popular genres would do well to take advantage of the insights presented so cogently here."—American Music

"This ground-breaking study examines the split between 'classical' and 'popular' Western music in the 19th century...and imparts fascinating insights about the derivation of blues types, classic ragtime, and parlor music....A truly original contribution....Strongly recommended for both college and public libraries."—Choice

"What an interesting book! Van der Merwe has raised fundamental questions about twentieth-century music and has dealt with them provocatively, thoroughly, and, in some cases, conclusively. His discussion of the origins of the blues form alone is invaluable."—Martin Williams

From the Publisher