Music for Sight Singing (Fifth Edition)

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 378 pages
• Published by: Prentice Hall
• Edition: 5th Edition 2002
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0130262633
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0130262639
• Book Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.9 x 0.2 inches
• Weighs: 1.2 pounds

The publisher, Prentice-Hall Humanities/Social Science
Ottman blends step-by-step guidance with frequent practice to cultivate an understanding of and the skills for sight singing--the ability to hear mentally a piece of printed music without using an instrument. The Fourth Edition provides a finely organized collection of melodies taken from music literature mostly ranging from fundamental works of the past to representative excerpts taken from recent twentieth-century music. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Back Cover Copy


This versatile volume presents a collection of melodies carefully selected for their capacity to develop sight singing ability. Featuring singing material from folk music and the literature of composed music, Music for Sight Singing, Fifth Edition continues to expose students to a wide range of musical styles. All melodies are graded according to both rhythmic and melodic difficulty and progress from the easiest materials to more complex.

Featuring over one thousand melodies and exercises, each chapter presents a new problem in either rhythm or melody, allowing students to study one problem at a time-but giving them experience in performing both rhythmic and melodic patterns. In addition, the following revisions have been carefully incorporated to enhance t lie overall presentation:

• More easy melodic examples in the earlier chapters.
• Expanded chapter on "Modulation to the Dominant."
• Singing range of many melodies lowered in order to avoid high notes.
• Difficult key signatures found at the end of earlier chapters, as a separate presentation.
• More instructional materials.
• More suggestions for alternative presentations of sight singing materials.

Reader Reviews
This review is from: Music For Sight Singing (Spiral-bound) I agree with the reviewer who highlights the usefulness of the Ottman text; the additions and improvements (such as adding contemporary melodies) are indeed welcome. That's five stars for the book. Four for the high price. However, I also understand the other reviewer's complaint about the very high price, particularly in the case of this particular sight-singing text. College book stores are frequently asked why their textbooks cost so much, and their current excuse is that "since textbooks often come bundled with CD-ROMs and other extras"--that is why the high price. THIS price is just for a spiral-bound, soft-cover book. "1000 melodies," perhaps, but in a sight-singing text like this one most of these are simple and short (less than a page each). There are none of the above-mentioned "extras" bundled with it. This book, though excellent, has ALWAYS been, in my opinion, OVERPRICED. The publisher is interested in profits, THAT IS their business, and that goal is in itself is not necessarily bad, when pursued honestly. We sometimes are oblivious that THAT is the main reason that standard college textbooks are constantly being revised (read: slightly altered) every couple of years. Older editions of the same textbooks would be just as effective, for instructive purposes. But business is business. Addendum: Making money, in itself, is not a sin. In fact, isn't that one of the main reasons most people attend college, so that that they can become more effective at "making money"? Music majors have to recognize this fact, that their art has a business side. A great book on that subject is Angela Beeching's "Beyond Talent: Create a Successful Career in Music." Finally, check out the comments about the business of music and art, made by the fictitious composer Richard Halley in Ayn Rand's 1957 novel, "Atlas Shrugged." --Majok Comment | | (Report this)