莫扎特的音乐为何如此出色？为什么小和弦听起来很悲伤，大和弦听起来很快乐？歌剧和轻歌剧有什么区别？从巴赫（Bach）到伯恩斯坦（Bernstein），这本权威指南全面概述了古典音乐的历史。

无论已经是古典音乐的爱好者，还是刚刚开始探索古典音乐，《古典音乐全指南》都将邀请您去探索伯德弥撒曲的灵性，亨德尔的《弥赛亚》的威力，瓦格纳歌剧的奇迹，以及数百种位他作曲家及其杰作。本指南将带您穿越1000多年的历史，记录乐器，风格和流派的演变。重要和鲜为人知的作曲家传记提供了对他们的音乐以及影响他们天赋的历史和文化背景的深刻见解。

本书探讨了定义每个音乐时代的特征——从巴洛克风格的华丽光彩到浪漫音乐般的戏剧，再到极简主义和电子音乐等现代流派。大事年表，语录和彩色照片表现了这种音乐以及创造它的天赋异禀的人物们。

What makes Mozart's music so great? Why does a minor chord sound sad and a major chord sound happy? What's the difference between opera and operetta? From Bach to Bernstein, this definitive guide offers a complete survey of the history of classical music.

Whether you already love classical music or you're just beginning to explore it, The Complete Classical Music Guide invites you to discover the spirituality of Byrd's masses, the awesome power of Handel's Messiah, and the wonders of Wagner's operas, as well as hundreds more composers and their masterpieces. This guide takes you on a journey through more than 1,000 years, charting the evolution of musical instruments, styles, and genres. Biographies of major and lesser-known composers offer rich insights into their music and the historical and cultural contexts that influenced their genius.

The book explores the features that defined each musical era - from the ornate brilliance of the Baroque, through the drama of Romantic music, to contemporary genres such as minimalism and electronic music. Timelines, quotes, and colour photographs give a voice to this music and the exceptionally gifted individuals who created it.