3 ms·

Perhaps relevant to some other HN users... This list has a recommendation for Introduction to Tonal Theory over Piston's Harmony. I am not familiar with the fo

by evoxed 15y ago

Perhaps relevant to some other HN users... This list has a recommendation for Introduction to Tonal Theory over Piston's Harmony. I am not familiar with the former, but I found Walter Piston's books to be fascinating and generally very good. It's an older book and so, as I've found with most textbooks from its time, it is somewhat lacking in explanations of certain examples– but then, the internet will supply you with more than you need if you're already reading the material.

jinfiesto 15y ago
I also found Piston's book to be more than satisfactory. It's much better than the drivel that seems to have made its way into university theory classes everywhere. Alternatively, Hindemith's theory books take an interesting perspective, although they're definitely not for the beginner. Hindemith develops an interesting tonal system that, paradoxically, includes the atonal music of Schonberg as well as jazz, to his chagrin, and other more modern developments. One of the nice parts of Piston's Harmony is that it makes for good bedside reading if you have a cursory knowledge of theory. You'll have many aha! moments for very little effort. Additionally, it's an excellent reference. I find myself consulting it from time to time.
pygy_ 15y ago
From the Amazon reviews, it appears that the posthumous editions (4th and 5th) depart from the spirit of the earlier ones, and have become unpalatable. Edit: One reviewer who has used the 3rd to 5th editions prefers the fourth one, which is less terse than the 3rd one.
- evoxed 15y ago
  Just checked my shelf– I have the third edition of Harmony and 4th of Counterpoint, terse is a fair judgement. I'll have to give the later editions a look, but judging by the reviews (and the Revised by MARK DEVOTO tag...) I'm not going to like what I see.

3 ms·

Perhaps relevant to some other HN users... This list has a recommendation for Introduction to Tonal Theory over Piston's Harmony. I am not familiar with the fo

by evoxed 15y ago

jinfiesto 15y ago
I also found Piston's book to be more than satisfactory. It's much better than the drivel that seems to have made its way into university theory classes everywhere. Alternatively, Hindemith's theory books take an interesting perspective, although they're definitely not for the beginner. Hindemith develops an interesting tonal system that, paradoxically, includes the atonal music of Schonberg as well as jazz, to his chagrin, and other more modern developments. One of the nice parts of Piston's Harmony is that it makes for good bedside reading if you have a cursory knowledge of theory. You'll have many aha! moments for very little effort. Additionally, it's an excellent reference. I find myself consulting it from time to time.
pygy_ 15y ago
From the Amazon reviews, it appears that the posthumous editions (4th and 5th) depart from the spirit of the earlier ones, and have become unpalatable. Edit: One reviewer who has used the 3rd to 5th editions prefers the fourth one, which is less terse than the 3rd one.
- evoxed 15y ago
  Just checked my shelf– I have the third edition of Harmony and 4th of Counterpoint, terse is a fair judgement. I'll have to give the later editions a look, but judging by the reviews (and the Revised by MARK DEVOTO tag...) I'm not going to like what I see.