Understanding Post-Tonal Music is a student-centered textbook that
explores the compositional and musical processes of twentieth-century
post-tonal music. Intended for undergraduate or general graduate courses
on the theory and analysis of twentieth-century music, this book will
increase the accessibility of post-tonal music by providing students
with tools for understanding pitch organization, rhythm and meter, form,
texture, and aesthetics. By presenting the music first and then deriving
the theory, Understanding Post-Tonal Music leads students to greater
understanding and appreciation of this challenging and important
repertoire.
The updated second edition includes new "Explorations" features that
guide students to engage with pieces through listening and a process of
exploration, discovery, and discussion; a new chapter covering
electronic, computer, and spectral musics; and additional coverage of
music from the twenty-first century and recent trends. The text has been
revised throughout to enhance clarity, both by streamlining the prose
and by providing a visual format more accessible to the student.