Book Review: Reflections on Elizabeth A. H. Green’s Life and Career in Music Education

Abstract

The relevance of the book to music education history is clear. It offers a fascinating collection of different historical approaches to conceptualizing music and teaching singing. It provides translations of a range of European texts with accessible introductions noting their contexts and importance. Friddle’s immersion in the choral and organ worlds, as well as his scholarly experience, shine through in the close attention to musical examples and practical exercises, as well as some comment on their particular relevance for modern-day practice. It is this turn towards practitioners, rather than scholars, which perhaps characterizes the emphasis of the book on sources and factual information, rather than narrative and argument. Despite this, however, the book provides an important resource for performers, educators and researchers, and this reviewer has no doubt it will act as a valuable springboard for further research in this area.