Lovely content: inconsistent fit and finish

What aspect of Jeffrey Lependorf’s performance would you have changed?

There were a number of times when the excerpt he played did not line up with the commentary. I don't know if this was a matter of post-production, or if he made these errors himself, but it made the commentary confusing.

Any additional comments?

I am a musician who bought this book to share it with a non-musician wife. I found a lot of his commentary quite useful, in that he picked out things to highlight that gave a good understanding of the material, some even new to me, but I get the sense from my wife's comments that she didn't get as much out of the lectures as I had hoped. I think this is an excellent series for people with some musical literacy, but there are some assumptions that leave the non-musician behind.

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Excellent and solid listen

Listening to the lectures gave me so much pleasure. Prof. Lependorf teaches the listener to understand the music and create a mental map of the passages. Personally, it was like learning a new language in an insightful way. I'd say the lectures helped to develop my sensitivity.
You can download the accompanying guide and figure out what the lectures are about. In short, they cover the following musicians and their masterpieces:
A.Vivaldi 'The Spring' (Movement I), J.S.Bach 'Brandenburg Concerto No. 5' (Movement I), G.F.Handel 'The Messiah' (“Ev’ry Valley”, “All We Like Sheep”, “Hallelujah”), W.A.Mozart 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusik' (Movement I), L. van Beethoven 'Symphony No. 5' (Movement I), H.Berlioz 'Symphonie Fantastique', F.Chopin 'Nocturnes' (Vol. 1, Nocturne in Db, Op. 27, No. 2), J.Brahms 'Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Händel' (Variations I, II, III, V, VI, Fugue), R.Wagner 'Prelude to Tristan', M.Mussorgsky 'Pictures at an Exhibition' ('Promenade', 'The Gnome', 'Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks', 'Great Gate of Kiev'), C.Debussy 'Prelude to The Afternoon of the Faun', I.Stravinsky 'The Rite of Spring' (Pt. 1), M.Ravel 'Mother Goose Suite', A.Copland 'Appalachian Spring Suite'.
Prof. Lependorf introduces such notions as tonic, ritornello, tutti, continuo, terraced dynamics, concerto grosso, pedal point, cadenza, oratorio, melisma, serenade, sonata-allegro, adagio, col legno, bel canto, arpeggio, da capo aria, tempo rubato, appoggiatura, hemiola, rounded binary, canon, cross-rhythm, two-against-three, leitmotiv, tremolo, ostinato, whole-tone scale, pentatonic scale, mode, gamelan, glissando, and syncopation, to name a few.
The lectures expanded my musical experience. I'll certainly listen to them again.

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12 people found this helpful

Phenomenal introduction to Western Music!

Where does The Modern Scholar rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The caliber of all the Modern Scholar lectures have been very, very high but this lecture was truly exceptional.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Modern Scholar?

All the satisfying moments when Jeffrey Lependorf nailed the essence of a particular masterpiece and I could understand why it was truly great.

Which character – as performed by Jeffrey Lependorf – was your favorite?

The question is not really applicable, but I loved the background sketches of the great composers. It made it easier to put the masterpieces in context.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, but in a good way. The lecture is very dense with lots of new (to me) ideas and I needed time for it to sink in. What I do want to do is listen to the lectures again!

Any additional comments?

For a complete newbie to this subject, this lecture series had to be the most enjoyable and entertaining way to be introduced to Western musical history. The professor demystified a subject that I always thought was very intimidating. I also liked the way the professor introduced musical terms in a simple and easy to understand manner.

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A joyful tour through the history of the classics!

Any additional comments?

I recommend this book to everyone! It is complex enough for those who know music and simple enough for beginners.

The sound quality of the musical examples is not the best, but you should buy and listen to the complete recordings of the pieces after the lecture anyway, if you don't already have them.

Also, Prof. Lependorf is not a professional voice artist, that is clear. However, his love and enthusiasm for the subject shines through and his delivery is very relaxed and friendly. Prof. Lependorf gave new depth to pieces that I thought I knew well, and turned me on to others that I had neglected for one reason or another.

These are fascinating lectures that include both the technical music theory behind the pieces, as well as the human stories of the people that created them and just enough audio examples to demonstrate his points while enticing us to seek out the full recordings to hear more.

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6 people found this helpful

music teacher appreciates book

Would you consider the audio edition of The Modern Scholar to be better than the print version?

I haven't seen the print edition.
It would be nice to see the print edition after having listened to this audio version. I want to use some of the examples in teaching and it would be great to have a print version to go back to rather than have to find all the spots that I was listening to and thinking "oh yeah, I need to point that out".

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Modern Scholar?

loved the way he described the appoggiatura.. and so many other things.. pedal point leading to a key change... yes, so many things

What about Jeffrey Lependorf’s performance did you like?

Nice bird's eye view.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Leaning into the music: the appoggiatura made simple

Any additional comments?

I'd like to hear more. Perhaps a series of audible books -- each taking an in-depth look at a specific style period.

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3 people found this helpful

Great!

The narrator swallows saliva more audibly than I care to hear, but the lectures were great!

More importantly THERE IS MUSIC IN THIS RECORDING!

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3 people found this helpful

Too much theory, too much talking,too little music

I wanted to like this but after the first couple of lectures, I tired of the pedantic lecturer droning on about the music theory of each piece. Do you know what a tonic is? What a dominant is or a motive? How about a cadence or a key? I will say that my lack of background sent me to the internet where I learned a lot more about music which I do want to learn more about. But this series of rather dry lectures did not really teach me very much. I could barely hang on till the end and definitely cut some of the worst ones short. And the sound track was very poor so even when the music played, it was not really great listening.

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