A fully revised opening unit starts students off with a more accessible introduction to music fundamentals and to focused listening. Extensively rewritten and reorganized, Unit I begins with the topics that are easiest for non-majors to grasp, such as beat and rhythm, and gradually introduces more complex topics. Explanations are clear enough for beginning students, without relying on excessive detail, and material on music notation has been moved to an appendix.
New musical selections provide clearer, more accessible examples of medieval and Baroque music. The seventh edition introduces the joyful round “Sumer Is Icumen In,” a lovely chanson by Machaut, Bach's famous Prelude and Fugue in C Major from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, and new examples of Baroque dances by Bach, Handel, and Rameau.
Expanded coverage of Romantic opera offers more teachable examples for today's students. The revised Chapter 18 introduces Verdi's Rigoletto (“La donna è mobile” and “Bella figlia dell'amore”) and Puccini's Madame Butterfly (“Un bel dì”).
A new, affordable streaming music option gives students online access to the recordings for a fraction of the price of CDs. In addition to a choice of CD sets, students now have the option to purchase one year of access to streaming music, which offers nearly all of the recordings that are on the full 6-CD set.
"Interactive Listening Charts" now work with streaming music for a more seamless online experience. Selected "Listening Charts" from the book are presented in an interactive format to guide students through the music and allow them to play back each musical event in the piece with a single mouseclick. Access to these charts is free with purchase of a CD set and is included with access to streaming music.
A new, all-inclusive e-book combines the complete text, streaming music, "Interactive Listening Charts," and other online resources—all for significantly less than the price of the print book with CDs.