Rating: 
Summary: okay
Review: This book is fine. I should like to point out, however, at the risk of belaboring the bleedingly obvious (as comedian John Cleese might put it), that a book true to its title called "A History of Western Music" is necessarily concerned with the past, and the past tends not to change. The past is pretty much content to stay put. (On the other hand, the number of graduate students in "musicology" keeps increasing, and if these students want eventually to find positions they have to publish papers. Having found positions, if they want to secure tenure, they have to publish more papers. To accommodate them there exist paper receptacles called "journals". The past is pretty much impervious to the contents of these paper receptacles.)
Rating: 
Summary: The Place to Start
Review: This book is undoubtedly the place to begin any serious look into music history. It is an omnibus study of what is commonly referred to as Western Art Music. It discusses composers, styles, and trends within music history itself. It doesn't cover ethnomusicology more than necessary (although it does point out examples beyond the scope of the book that merit further study, such as jazz). As for tying music history to art history, world history, and philosophy (ie the "new" musicology), this book does a commendable, albeit conservative, job. There are discussions of how major historical trends shaped music (most notably the spread of Christianity) and plenty of color plates showing works of art contemporary to the pieces being discussed.What sets this book apart from other omnibus texts is its throughness. It starts at the very beginning of music history and remains strong to the present. Here is a page breakdown to illustrate my point: 1-32 - Ancient Greek and Roman Musical Thought (very few textbooks start before the Medieval period) 32-152 - Medieval Music 152-268 - Renaissance Music 268-439 - Baroque Period 439-533 - Classical Period 533-692 - Romantic Period 692-805 - Modern and Postmodern trends 805-822 - Glossary (very useful) As you can see, it treats all the phases of music history relatively equally, giving a better sense of how the big picture comes together. There is some excellent supplemental material which includes the basics of reading medieval and renaissance music notation. Donald Grout and Claude Palisca aren't so much boring in their writing style as they are serious. The book is concise and well-written. While it is by no means a page-turner (it's much too dense), it does have a good flow. At $65, this book is expensive, but it's well worth the extra money to get the best text available. I know this will be a reference resource in my library for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: The Place to Start
Review: This book is undoubtedly the place to begin any serious look into music history. It is an omnibus study of what is commonly referred to as Western Art Music. It discusses composers, styles, and trends within music history itself. It doesn't cover ethnomusicology more than necessary (although it does point out examples beyond the scope of the book that merit further study, such as jazz). As for tying music history to art history, world history, and philosophy (ie the "new" musicology), this book does a commendable, albeit conservative, job. There are discussions of how major historical trends shaped music (most notably the spread of Christianity) and plenty of color plates showing works of art contemporary to the pieces being discussed. What sets this book apart from other omnibus texts is its throughness. It starts at the very beginning of music history and remains strong to the present. Here is a page breakdown to illustrate my point: 1-32 - Ancient Greek and Roman Musical Thought (very few textbooks start before the Medieval period) 32-152 - Medieval Music 152-268 - Renaissance Music 268-439 - Baroque Period 439-533 - Classical Period 533-692 - Romantic Period 692-805 - Modern and Postmodern trends 805-822 - Glossary (very useful) As you can see, it treats all the phases of music history relatively equally, giving a better sense of how the big picture comes together. There is some excellent supplemental material which includes the basics of reading medieval and renaissance music notation. Donald Grout and Claude Palisca aren't so much boring in their writing style as they are serious. The book is concise and well-written. While it is by no means a page-turner (it's much too dense), it does have a good flow. At $65, this book is expensive, but it's well worth the extra money to get the best text available. I know this will be a reference resource in my library for years to come.
Rating: 
Summary: It is what it is...
Review: This book remains the standard music history reference for graduate and undergraduate students throughout the United States. It does not pretend to represent every branch or trend of musicology, or even begin to touch upon the vast subject of ethno-musicology. It does provide a sound and thorough reference as to the developments of Western "classical" music.
Rating:
Summary: The standard by which other music historians must follow.
Review: This is agreeably the most popular and complete text for any serious student of music history. It is straightforward, concise, and without unnecessary embelishments other authors may find necessary. This straightforward writing style, I must admit, does not make it the most exciting text available. When I was in undergraduate school, I found that Grout's book was often the most effective cure for insomnia.
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