Contents
General
And the Band Played On
DBM 355
Describes the main instruments of the band and summarizes the principles on which they work. Includes a brief history of band music in America.
Instruments around the World
DBM 1467
Andy Jackson talks with Jim Smith, music director, about a selection of instruments from every continent and culture.
The Voices of the Orchestra
DBM 224
Walter Damrosch discusses the human voice—the first musical instrument.
Brass
Ballad of the Brass
DBM 36
Introduction to brass instruments by members of the New York Brass Quintet.
Brass Instruments
DBM 310
Walter Damrosch reviews the history of brass instruments and gives examples of ways composers have used them.
Nuremberg
DBM 383
Discussion of Nuremberg’s role as the center for production of fine brass instruments.
Opposites Attract
DBM 638
Musicians John Barrows and Vera Brodsky illustrate the relationship of the piano to the French horn with many musical examples.
Electronic
Electronic Keyboards
DBM 1302
Vinnie Martucci discusses how to arrange music for synthesizers in a variety of styles.
Glenn Gould on the Moog Synthesizer
DBM 244
Glenn Gould talks about the Moog synthesizer used in the production of the recording Switched-on Bach.
Good Vibrations
DBM 204
An anthropologist examines the evolution of music and musical instruments. The discussion ranges from Bach to Moog synthesizers and Muzak.
Keyboard
The Harp and the Piano
DBM 261
Lecture on the development and uses of the harp and the piano.
The Immortal Piano
DBM 959
Intriguing story of the Siena pianoforte and its endurance through misuse, abuse, and final restoration.
The Keyboard Instruments
DBM 250
Selections from Byrd, Scarlatti, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Debussy, and Bartók are used in tracing the evolution of keyboard instruments.
A Light History of Jazz Piano and a Short History of the Piano
DBM 3681
Bill Irwin provides an enthusiastic and entertaining history of jazz piano with examples of famous performers.
Opposites Attract
DBM 638
Musicians John Barrows and Vera Brodsky illustrate the relationship of the piano to the French horn with many musical examples.
Percussion
From Cave to Cavern
DBM 1464
James Blades discusses the history of percussion instruments.
Percussion Discussion
DBM 153
The New York Percussion Trio demonstrates a variety of percussion instruments and their musical potential.
Percussion Instruments
DBM 210
Conductor and composer Walter Damrosch discusses the importance of percussion music in cultural life. Examples illustrate the importance of percussion in the indigenous music of Africa, Arabia, Mexico, and South America.
Strings
The Glory of Cremona
DBM 914
The story of superb violin making is told beginning with the Amati family and followed by Guarneri and Stradivarius. Ruggiero Ricci plays the musical selections on several instruments created by Antonio Stradivari, Joseph Guarneri del Gesu, Andrea and Nicolò Amati, Carlo Bergonzi, and Gasparo da Salo.
The Stradivarius
DBM 48
Members of the Stradivarius Society discuss the fine quality and unique tone of Stradivarius instruments.
The String Instruments
DBM 223
Walter Damrosch illustrates how the string instruments can produce coloristic effects.
String Orchestra
DBM 303
Three selections illustrating the changes in musical composition for strings—Vivaldi’s Concerto Grosso in D Minor for Strings, Grieg’s Last Spring, and Hanson’s Concerto for Organ, Strings, and Harp.
The Violin in Mr. Greenstreet’s Window
DBM 972
Fictional life story of a violin that was on display in a pawnshop window.
Violins Old and New/Authenticity of Performance
DBM 1499
An investigation conducted by John Amis with Isaac Stern, Pinchas Zucherman, Manoug Parikian, and Charles Beare. Four violins are examined here: a Stradivarius, a Guarnerius, a nineteenth-century French instrument, and an English instrument made in 1975 that won a competition for violin makers. In authenticity of performance, George Malcolm explains what this involves and the difficulties that might be encountered.
Woodwinds
The Flute and the Harp
DBM 256
Edna Phillips explains, demonstrates, and compares one of the earliest harps with those used today. Flutist Samuel Baron joins Phillips in performing pieces arranged for flute and harp.
Mr. Hohner’s Amazing Harmonica
DBM 348
History of the harmonica, concentrating on the influence of Matthias Hohner, who in1857 produced the first modern harmonicas.
Woodwind Quintet
DBM 304
Demonstrates the great variety of color and expressiveness in a woodwind quintet of flute, clarinet, oboe, French horn, and bassoon in works of Percy Grainger, Maurice Ravel, Philip James, and Leo Sowerby. Narrated by Walter Damrosch.
The Woodwinds
DBM 335
Walter Damrosch discusses and illustrates the history of woodwind instruments and their relationship to the orchestra, using Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 and the second movement of Schubert’s C Minor Symphony as examples.
The World of Woodwind
DBM 334
The New York Woodwind Quintet demonstrates and describes how woodwind instruments are played. Narrated by Yehudi Menuhin.