Understanding music

the long version

"Roger Scruton's book, The Aesthetics of Music, published in 1997, set a new standard of rigour and seriousness in the philosophy of music. Now, with these wide-ranging essays on all aspects of the theory and practice of music, Scruton fills in the picture outlined in the previous work, and shows the significance of music as an expression of the moral life." "Besides studies of individual composers and compositions, Understanding Music presents a powerful encomium of the Western classical tradition, a wide-ranging study of rhythm and its significance, and a defence of the American song-book against the ravings of Adorno. The book will appeal both to specialists in philosophy and musicology and also to the ordinary music lover, who wishes to find the deeper meaning of this mysterious art."--Jacket.