Concert Masterworks
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Narrated by:
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Robert Greenberg
About this listen
Have you ever thought about the creative process that boiled inside geniuses like Mozart, Beethoven, Dvorák, Strauss, Brahms, Mendelssohn, or Liszt - or any composer, for that matter?
What goes through a composer's mind when a musical composition is being set to paper? Are those magical weeks or months spent in an agonizing creative blur of ideas first tried and then discarded, or is it a matter of pure inspiration? Does the composer hear the music in his head before even picking up a pen, or does the music in fact begin on that blank sheet of staff paper? Most important, can lay listeners like us, untrained in music's technicalities, learn how to open our ears to a composer's creative intentions?
Happily, the answer is a resounding "yes!" And in this series of 32 lectures, a professional composer and accomplished teacher will give you a new level of sophistication as a music listener - using as his teaching tools some of the most memorable works in all of music, by geniuses whose work has not only withstood time, but transcended it.
Through listening to these lectures, you'll gain a new grasp of the intricacies of musical purpose, structure, and narrative content that you will then be able to hear in any piece of music. And though this is a demanding course, with a deeper look into musical structure than untrained listeners are likely to have experienced, it is not an intimidating one. Professor Greenberg vividly positions each composition and its composer in the social and musical fabric of its period, so you can understand the music in its proper societal and artistic context and feel its emotional power in the same way as did its original audiences.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
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- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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The very strange but nevertheless true story of the dark underbelly of a 1960s hippie utopia. Laurel Canyon in the 1960s and early 1970s was a magical place where a dizzying array of musical artists congregated to create much of the music that provided the soundtrack to those turbulent times. But there was a dark side to that scene as well. Many didn't make it out alive, and many of those deaths remain shrouded in mystery to this day.
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My first review. This book changed me.
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The Godfather: A Film We Can't Refuse
- By: Paramount Pictures
- Narrated by: Rebecca Keegan
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With exclusive insights from the legendary cast, including Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Robert De Niro, and Talia Shire, and commentary from a diverse array of film experts and ardent aficionados, we dissect the film’s magnetic allure and its pervasive influence across our culture. Journey alongside Rebecca Keegan, acclaimed senior film editor at The Hollywood Reporter, as she explores the heart of this cinematic masterpiece through a new lens.
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Deep dive into The Godfather
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Song of the Northwoods
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After a betrayal at work costs Song Kuan her job, she retreats to her friend Lucy’s idyllic family cabin on a lake in Minnesota to lick her wounds. She devotes herself to recording Ice Cold Cases, a true-crime podcast that she and Lucy cohost with the gleeful energy of obsessed fans—until an anonymous tip about a missing-person case disrupts their equilibrium. Then Lucy disappears, leaving Song alone in an unfriendly and unfamiliar town where locals don’t take kindly to strangers asking questions.
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Asians in MN! I loved it. The vivid sounds of Northern Minnesota totally took me there, and I was hooked into the mystery.
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The Energy Curfew Music Hour
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It’s time to unplug with the Grammy-winning Punch Brothers, fronted by singer-mandolinist Chris Thile, as they bring you a multi-episode musical variety show with dazzling musical guests, like Kacey Musgraves, Jason Isbell, Jon Batiste, Norah Jones, James Taylor, and many more.
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Gifted musicians and storytellers right in their element and at the height of their powers
- By Megan G Kahl on 10-27-24
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What listeners say about Concert Masterworks
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Lauren Lynley
- 02-27-22
Very Engaging Course
I have taken several of Dr. Greenberg’s courses and have enjoyed them all! Concert Masterworks provides a fantastic overview of many of classical music’s most beloved pieces. It also allows Robert Greenberg to flex his muscle as a composer and music historian. I love that Audible is offering Great Courses!
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- Bill Hill
- 04-08-22
Superb!
A wonderful introduction to the world of music composition. like all of Robert Greenberg's courses, clear, unpretentious and very entertaining.
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- Rose Jenkins
- 05-24-23
Educational and entertaining
I sound like a broken record in my reviews of Professor Greenberg’s many lecture series. Can I help it if all the ones I’ve heard have been educational and entertaining?
For example, I never would have thought that I would have been able to appreciate Liszt’s Totentanz given its topic. But Professor Greenberg again has taught me well. Thank you.
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- Andrew
- 11-05-13
A great way to add to your concertgoing experience
This is the best credit I've spent in a long time. Rather than just providing technical details and historical context, Professor Greenberg explains exactly what another composer would be listening for in each of these works. The result is eye-opening, even for someone who regularly attends orchestral concerts.
If you've listened to Professor Greenberg's "30 Greatest Orchestral Works" in the same series, Concert Masterworks is deeper and more engaging in every way.
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13 people found this helpful
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- Miles
- 07-03-15
Great series
This has been well reviewed by others and it is a great series. The only negative is the lack of the supplemental material which could easily be provided but is not. Why the publisher has denied purchasers this material is a mystery. It is technically very easy and would cost nothing.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Peter
- 06-27-20
His loud mouth bloviating becomes so tiresome.
At first the author is funny and just irreverent. But after several chapters he just appears to be silly, crude, egotistical, and downright offensive. It's just not funny anymore.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Kai Kay
- 01-15-17
Really loved this. Prof. Greenberg Always great.
fascinating, yet accessible and detailed exploration of some amazing masterpieces with helpful background and humor.
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1 person found this helpful
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- SteveR
- 10-25-22
Pretty Wonderful 😎
I will call this lecture series an extraordinary musical journey, an intense labor of love by Professor Greenberg.
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- Kindle Customer
- 11-09-14
Down the rabbit hole with Dr. G!
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
My first attempt to break into the world of really enjoying music came when my husband bought. The Concert Masterworks. Until then, I knew my favorite music was Bach’s and Mozart came second and Beethoven and Vivaldi and Teleman were in there somewhere. I was pretty much a Baroque girl. When I listened to the first two lectures, I realized I was missing a lot. So, I got the How to Listen and Understand Great Music. Loved it. Listened until I got to the Classical Period and went back and did Bach and the High Baroque. Then on with the Classical Period--which I have not finished yet because I did Great Masters: Mozart and am about to start The Concerto. And then, either The Chamber Music of Mozart or The Symphony. I am enjoying Dr. Greenberg’s expertise and attitude so much that I keep diving down new rabbit holes!
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21 people found this helpful
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- Pablo
- 02-08-14
Really great course, loved it and learned so much!
Would you listen to Concert Masterworks again? Why?
Yes, it was very well presented, very informative and really interesting.
Who was your favorite character and why?
There weren't really any characters, but I enjoyed all the pieces that were chosen.
What about Professor Robert Greenberg’s performance did you like?
Prof. Greenberg was great, he really knows his material and he made the listening very entertaining.
Any additional comments?
It would be even better if they included the word scores with the audiobook.
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3 people found this helpful