Rating: 
Summary: A review from a different perspective
Review: I suppose that since I was confused just by the description of this book on the back, I probably shouldn't have bought it. But I did. I have a limited background in computer music, and had heard all about Csound and how great it was, and wanted to give it a shot. I had the Csound Reference Manual, which was not helpful at all, so I thought a book like this would be good to buy. I would like to warn people that if you are looking to learn computer music on your own, this is not the book to start with. To really be able to use the book, you need to be very familiar with how computer music works, and with the major sound synthesis methods. I should add, too, that if you don't know much about computer music in the first place, Csound probably isn't the best choice for a program to learn it on. I was hoping for an organized introduction to Csound that would take me step by step through learning it, and that is not what this book is. To me, as a beginner, it's just a bunch of scattered information. And the CD's are confusing, as well. I had a hard time just finding the files to use for the first tutorial. Several of the example instruments require sound files that aren't even included in the same folder as the instrument's score and orchestra files. Overall, to me, the book is a confusing, overwhelming mish-most of information that I mostly don't understand. Unfortunately, I can't return it because I opened the CD. If you are an experienced computer musician with some experience in Csound, or if you have a teacher to help you, this book would be great as it is full of excellent resources. But it's NOT for the novice computer musician! I should have gone through it more carefully before blowing my $55, so don't make the same mistake I did!
Rating:
Summary: A review from a different perspective
Review: I suppose that since I was confused just by the description of this book on the back, I probably shouldn't have bought it. But I did. I have a limited background in computer music, and had heard all about Csound and how great it was, and wanted to give it a shot. I had the Csound Reference Manual, which was not helpful at all, so I thought a book like this would be good to buy. I would like to warn people that if you are looking to learn computer music on your own, this is not the book to start with. To really be able to use the book, you need to be very familiar with how computer music works, and with the major sound synthesis methods. I should add, too, that if you don't know much about computer music in the first place, Csound probably isn't the best choice for a program to learn it on. I was hoping for an organized introduction to Csound that would take me step by step through learning it, and that is not what this book is. To me, as a beginner, it's just a bunch of scattered information. And the CD's are confusing, as well. I had a hard time just finding the files to use for the first tutorial. Several of the example instruments require sound files that aren't even included in the same folder as the instrument's score and orchestra files. Overall, to me, the book is a confusing, overwhelming mish-most of information that I mostly don't understand. Unfortunately, I can't return it because I opened the CD. If you are an experienced computer musician with some experience in Csound, or if you have a teacher to help you, this book would be great as it is full of excellent resources. But it's NOT for the novice computer musician! I should have gone through it more carefully before blowing my $55, so don't make the same mistake I did!
Rating: 
Summary: It's Come A Long Way Baby
Review: I've found that the Csound book provides more than just a way to learn Csound but rather a way to expand your knowledge in computer music as a whole. The basics of Csound are covered in chapter 1 of the book, which is what anyone who is new to csound should spend all of their time on until they understand how the language works. What I felt that the majority of the book and CDROM focused on were principles of computer musis such as synthesis, composition and performance, using Csound as the medium. It is much more than a "how to turn the knob" tutorial. I found this book to be a wonderful asset in that while learning about a particular topic, I can also render the sounds and modify each instrument at a minute level to gain a real understanding of how the principles work. If you are looking for a quick way to make analogy or other wierd sounds for the computer, this may not be the best choice, as Csound takes some time to learn. It took me quite a few weeks to get a grasp on what Csound was doing and how it works. The book does provide the easiest way to learn Csound, though Csound is by no means simple. It took me quite a few weeks to get a grasp on what Csound was doing and how it works, But once one starts to get a grasp on the language, the other chapters provide a lifetime of synthesis to explore.
Rating: 
Summary: Best way to learn synthesis and Csound
Review: I've found that the Csound book provides more than just a way to learn Csound but rather a way to expand your knowledge in computer music as a whole. The basics of Csound are covered in chapter 1 of the book, which is what anyone who is new to csound should spend all of their time on until they understand how the language works. What I felt that the majority of the book and CDROM focused on were principles of computer musis such as synthesis, composition and performance, using Csound as the medium. It is much more than a "how to turn the knob" tutorial. I found this book to be a wonderful asset in that while learning about a particular topic, I can also render the sounds and modify each instrument at a minute level to gain a real understanding of how the principles work. If you are looking for a quick way to make analogy or other wierd sounds for the computer, this may not be the best choice, as Csound takes some time to learn. It took me quite a few weeks to get a grasp on what Csound was doing and how it works. The book does provide the easiest way to learn Csound, though Csound is by no means simple. It took me quite a few weeks to get a grasp on what Csound was doing and how it works, But once one starts to get a grasp on the language, the other chapters provide a lifetime of synthesis to explore.
Rating:
Summary: The Art of Csound Programming
Review: This book teaches how to create vital sounds by the well-known techniques of DSP. With the programming etiquette of others as a reference, one can learn the art of csound whose potentiality is to be able to make the fine signal processings and the complicated routings, in a word, the musical manifolds. However this book might not be for the beginners. The following books are also recommended; 1) Charles Dodge: Computer Music. This book is for the beginners or the composers, because there is a lot of practical tips. The topics are limited, but its explanations are deep.
2) Curtis Roads: Computer Music Tutorial. This is rather for the students or the researchers, because there is a lot of historical informations on the computer music. The topics are more various, but its explanations are less practical.
Rating:
Summary: Long needed-much attempted
Review: This is a remarkable book, in that it covers an entire sub-community of computer music making that has until now been mostly ignored in print: the Csound community. Huge, diverse, and active, Csound represents the best of what the Net/hacker culture can achieve. But this diversity is both a strength and a problem: this book ranges from clever tutorial to deeply personal research... it will be the rare reader who finds all of this Omnibus volume to their liking. But most of the devoted hackers who use csound will find this odd collection of articles indispensable! The online Csound communitee is strong and greatly diverse, and this long awaited volume reflects that. I cannot recommend this volume too highly for the motivated musician/hacker interested in the state-of-the-art in digital synthesis.
Rating:
Summary: It's Come A Long Way Baby
Review: While the price of the book is substantial, compare it to a college course in designing and manufacturing computer sounds... if there's one in your area. It must be said, CSOUND IS NOT AN EASY STUDY. I suspect that for most people, gaining fluency is a matter of YEARS, at least if you're not a dedicated sound hacker. But if you're determined and have some background in audio (if you don't... STOP HERE!), this book will help you to use Csound to make some interesting sounds quickly. The (literally) thousands of pre-designed instruments are ready to use... you only have to create the scores (or modify those provided). Creating scores is NOT a joy. Basically it means typing in long columns of numbers.... because every instrument "call" has to have n parameters sent to it. If that sounds like gobbledygook, you might want to pass on Csound for now. Would that there were a sophisticated tool to assist in the job. If it's here I haven't found it yet. My major nitpick with the book (which, if you're inclined, is full of intriguing concepts and tricks) is the disorganization of the CD-ROMs. Yeah it was a big job, and I guess nobody really wanted to tackle it properly. On the other hand, by creating your own organization, you'll more quickly grasp the scope of the wealth of material here. If you don't like technology and haven't the time to specify controls in detail, look elsewhere. Csound gives you the freedom to design sounds that have never been heard before... but you hafta be willing to part with some blood, sweat and tears.
Rating:
Summary: csound book review
Review: wow, best thing to ever come along so buy 2 for you and your friends. also try the cd with 2000 additional orchestras. together you can do anything.
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