Music Resource Guide

The story of jazz begins in New Orleans, 19th-century America's most cosmopolitan city. Here, in the 1890s, African-American artists created a new music out of ragtime syncopations, Caribbean rhythms, marching band instrumentation, and the soulful feeling of the blues.

This outstanding 13-part series discusses modern musical instruments in elaborate detail. Each program focuses on a different instrument—its origin, history, how it is made, how it works. Viewers visit factories and watch as expert craftsmen construct each instrument.

This series of portraits tells the stories of the great composers by focusing on the innovations they brought to their art. Each program draws on a wealth of archival material, historical accounts, contributions from renowned musicologists, and world-class performers to chart the musical milestones in each composer’s career.

This program addresses questions young people may have about embarking on a career in music or musical composition. Focusing on current styles like rock, techno, and hip-hop, the video includes interviews with a classically trained composer as well as artists in other genres.

Gain an understanding of the basic elements of music with this 12-part Annenberg Learner series, an introduction to music with a global perspective. The series shows how elements such as melody, rhythm, and texture create an infinite variety of sounds and serve as expressions of culture.

This series presents the greatest conductors of the 20th century: Wilhelm Furtwängler, Leopold Stokowski, Richard Strauss, Bruno Walter, Arturo Toscanini, Herbert von Karajan, Otto Klemperer, Leonard Bernstein, and more, in rehearsal and in concert.

With the help of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra conducted by William Conway, this informative series explores the musical essence of five well-known works. The focus is on training the student to truly listen to musical effects created by the composers through the use of instrumentation, melody, timing, key change, and rhythmic patterns.

Includes videos on dance, music appreciation, music history, and world music.