This is the first comprehensive reference work on Australian music. With just over 1400 entries written by 125 authorities on the subject, the dictionary covers a wide spectrum of topics, from ancient Aboriginal traditions and European-derived orchestral, operatic, and concert music, to Australian folk, jazz, country, popular, rock, electronic, and experimental music. There are entries on major historical and contemporary figures, including those who have achieved worldwide fame, such as Peter Allen, Percy Grainger, Peggy Glanville-Hicks, Kylie Minogue, Barry Tuckwell, Charles Mackerras, and the three great divas: Nellie Melba, Joan Hammond, and Joan Sutherland. Leading orchestras and ensembles are represented, as well as major pop and rock groups, among them the Seekers, the Bee Gees, AC/DC, and Midnight Oil. In addition to entries on individual composers, performers, and musical works and instruments, the dictionary covers leading musicologists, critics, broadcasters, educators, and researchers. The dictionary thus considers and reflects the diversity of music on the Australian continent.
Country music features over 700 biographical entries of musicians, comedians, producers, singer/songwriters, and groups. Among them are current performers such as Billy Ray Cyrus and Faith Hill, and those that made history or are historical such as Carolina Tar Heels. Most of the biographical entries include a select discography. Despite its subtitle, the dictionary also offers about 40 subject entries, on song categories such as weepers (songs dripping with heavy sentiment), instruments such as the pedal steel guitar and the banjo, locales such as the Grand Ole Opry, subjects such as the radio, and subgenres such as countrypolitan. A few entries on musical styles are included, among them bluegrass, gospel, honky-tonk, and rockabilly. Indeed, Country music highlights the inclusiveness of country music’s connections to folk, rock, Tejano, and other roots genres. Broader aspects of the country music landscape such as record labels, social commentary, and politics are addressed as well, deepening the encompassing approach. The volume contains more than 70 photos which accompany select entries. Cross-referencing allows readers to unravel threads of related entries. Two appendices organize performers and other notables according to subgenres they are associated with and by the instruments that they play. The select bibliography, listing some 150 publications, provides solid coverage of popular and scholarly secondary sources on country music. A comprehensive name index includes song and album titles.
Latin music: Musicians, genres, and themes provides an in-depth exploration of the rich and diverse world of Latin music, examining its history, cultural significance, and the wide range of genres it encompasses. The encyclopedia covers the evolution of Latin music from its roots in Indigenous, African, and European traditions to its contemporary global influence. It offers detailed profiles of influential musicians, including iconic figures such as Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, and Carlos Santana, shedding light on their contributions to the development of Latin music and their lasting legacies. The two volumes delve into key genres like salsa, merengue, bachata, tango, and reggaetón, discussing their origins, stylistic characteristics, and cultural impact across different Latin American countries and communities. In addition to genre exploration, Latin music touches on broader themes such as identity, migration, and the ways in which Latin music has become a vehicle for social and political expression. The 244 entries also include socio-political factors that have shaped Latin music’s growth and dissemination. This is a key resource for music researchers looking to understand the musical traditions, key figures, and cultural contexts that have defined Latin music and its enduring global appeal.
Vietnamese musical instruments is one of the most comprehensive lexicons on this topic. Compiled by Terry Moran, an Australian teacher resident in Singapore, over the course of a 20-year research journey in Vietnam, the lexicon offers 241 individual entries, each accompanied by a hand-drawn illustration by Luke Agati. The lexicon includes aerophones (Họ Hơi), such as the Kèn đá, a 2000-year-old stone bugle discovered in 1994; chordophones (Họ Dây) from the different ethnic minorities across Vietnam; idiophones (Họ Tự Thân Vang), among them the world’s sixth oldest playable instrument, a lithophone; and membranophones (Họ Màng Rung), with an impressive 43 pages dedicated to this family of instruments from both the Việt majority and the ethnic minorities. There is also a section on instruments created in 2007 by members of the Khắc Chí Tre Xanh ensemble. Aside from details about instruments, the lexicon offers a brief history of Vietnamese music and some specifics about instrument classifications. Addresses of noteworthy stores and galleries of Vietnamese musical instruments are also indexed.
