{"product_id":"the-oxford-companion-to-musical-instruments","title":"The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom panpipes  to the agogo bell  to the tuba  musical instruments have formed an integral part of the cultures of the world. Their range and diversity--including the simplest of spoons as well as the complex pressure systems of a pipe organ--have inspired the skill and genius of maker  composer  and player. Now  in The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments  Anthony C. Baines provides a comprehensive guide to the astonishing variety of Western and non-Western musical instruments. Each entry in this lavishly illustrated book offers a concise description of the instrument  as well as a wealth of information on such subjects as playing techniques  harmonics and circular breathing  the sound of an instrument  acoustics  pitch  an instruments use within the orchestral repertoire or  for ethnomusicological instruments  within ritual  and significant developments in its history. Baines covers a vast array of instruments  from the common cowbell  to the Red-hot fountain pen (a novelty instrument of the 1930s)  to the Celtic harp. For instance  he discusses how the bladder pipe (a relative of the bagpipe) uses a pigs bladder  and tells how it is deodorized (with ammonia) and kept pliable (with brine). And in his entry on Antonio Stradivaris violins  he attributes the success of these prized instruments  not to age  or to choice of materials  but to good fortune. (Stradivari arched the body of his violins less than was common at the time  and when he later altered their necks  the Strads luckily responded well to the change.) Baines also includes general articles on the instruments of specific periods  such as the Renaissance or Baroque  as well as the instruments of individual continents. We learn  for example  that the countries from Burma through Thailand  Kampuchea  and Vietnam  to the Philippines  North Borneo  and Indonesia  are grouped musically as gong-chime cultures from the variety of gongs and gong chimes used over most of the area. And we even find separate entries on fakes and forgeries  walking stick instruments  and scrapers such as the domestic washboard. With numerous illustrations  musical examples  an appendix of makers mentioned within the text  and full bibliographical details  The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments is an invaluable source on the splendid variety of musical instruments  based on a lifetime of scholarship.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44986874101813,"sku":"ByrdShop_0193113341","price":52.29,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780193113343.jpg?v=1770919920","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-oxford-companion-to-musical-instruments","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}