A complete education in classical music, written with verve and wit. No music lover can pick up this one-volume compendium without becoming a more knowledgeable, discerning listener. • The <em>sonata form </em> revealed, and why it's been deeply satisfying for three centuries. • What to listen for in <em>Brahms,</em> a self-described Classicist who was one of music's great innovators<em>. • Pizzicato, fioritura, parlando, glissando. • </em>The transformative power of <em>Toscanini–</em>who earned more conducting the New York Philharmonic than his contemporary Babe Ruth made with the Yankees. • And throughout, more than 2,000 recommended recordings.<br><br>Log on and listen. Created with Naxos, the world's largest classical music label, the book includes a unique Web site featuring more than 500 examples cited in the text. Look up <em>barcarolle. </em> First read about its swaying 6/8 meter and Venetian origins; then log on to the music Web site and hear it performed in Act IV of Offenbach's <em>Les contes d'Hoffmann. </em>If that whets your curiosity about Offenbach, click to hear the cancan in his <em>La vie parisienne. </em>All online samples are marked by an icon in the text.