Music has been significant in social, religious, and political ritual, and in education, art, and entertainment in all human cultures from antiquity to today. The Cultural History of Western Music presents the first study of music in all its forms – ritual, classical, popular and commercial – from antiquity to today. The work is divided into 6 volumes, with each volume covering the same topics, so readers can either study a period/volume or follow a topic across history. The volumes are:
 
1. A Cultural History of Western Music in Antiquity
2. A Cultural History of Western Music in the Middle Ages
3. A Cultural History of Western Music in the Renaissance
4. A Cultural History of Western Music in the Age of Enlightenment
5. A Cultural History of Western Music in the Industrial Age
6. A Cultural History of Western Music in the Modern Age
 
The topics are identity, communities and society; changing philosophies and ideas about music; politics and power; musical exchange and knowledge transfer between the West and the non-West; musical education; popular culture and musical entertainment; the places, practices, and experiences of performance; and the development of music technologies and media.
 
The page extent for the pack is approximately 1712pp. Each volume opens with Notes on Contributors and an Introduction and concludes with Notes, Bibliography, and an Index.
 
The Cultural Histories Series
A Cultural History of Western Music is part of The Cultural Histories Series. Titles are available both as printed hardcover sets for libraries needing just one subject or preferring a one-off purchase and tangible reference for their shelves, or as part of a fully-searchable digital library available to institutions by annual subscription or perpetual access (see www.bloomsburyculturalhistory.com).