mrsmith@wheaties.ai.mit.edu (Mr. P. H. Smith) (08/02/90)
Hello, I would like to enlist the help of you all. I need to find examples of how people have divided and classified the field of *music* from pre-history to today. So, I figured if each person who responds to my request were to send me one example, I could rather quickly acquire an understanding of the history of musical classification, and a rather large bibliography. The kinds of classification I am looking for any and all which articulate the ENTIRE field of music, not just, say, instrumental styles. They may come from encyclopedias, newspapers, fiction, juvenile literature, records, movies, stone tablets -- heck, no source is unwelcome. Something along the lines of "Music can be divided into 4 main parts: rhythm, melody, harmony, and form." If you would be so kind as to send me a short note about one book or treatise in any language, written at any time, by composer, theorist, performer, musicologist, historian, or critic, I will have been much obliged. Also, if you are interested, I will forward the slew of references to whomever may desire it. My thanks to you all for helping a graduate student with his thesis proposal! Please email responses to: mrsmith@ai.mit.edu Thanks again! -- Paul Smith .................................................................... P.S. -- for simplicity's sake, the reference may be just a list of the author's divisions and the name, date, title of the source, but PLEASE make sure the list is in the order in which the author gives it and ... most importantly ... in the original language, if possible.