Professional and amateur musicians will appreciate this clear, readable
guide to the music of Bach, Handel, Vivaldi, Telemann, and other Baroque
composers. Author Victor Rangel-Ribeiro draws upon the writings of C. P.
E. Bach, J. J. Quantz, G. P. Telemann, Francesco Geminiani, Leopold
Mozart, and Giuseppe Tartini to offer advice on the difficult aspects of
eighteenth-century German, Italian, and English masterworks.
Advancing from relatively simple material to more complex works, this
guide begins by outlining the problems inherent in Baroque performance.
Subsequent chapters examine ornamentation and the principles of figured
bass, applying them to various types of works, including keyboard
concertos and vocal music. An epilogue sheds new light on a highly
complex rhythmic issue, and the appendices present three unfamiliar
examples of ornamentation. Profusely illustrated with musical examples,
this volume was praised by violinist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin for
its readable and engaging style, free from the pedantic, overly
scholarly approach.