For Music Appreciation courses at the college and high-school levels.Written in a lively and appealing style, Listening to Music provides the foundation for acquiring a lifelong knowledge and appreciation of music. It concentrates on the effective listening skills needed to identify composers and to recognize their styles and some of their representative works--playing in the background of the social, economic, and historical influences in their lives. Students are encouraged to become informed consumers of music and active supporters of the arts, gaining not only new expertise and insights but also being able to choose from the musical offerings available to them. Readers are able to recognize their responsibilities as audiences of the present and future.