Lights Music Action! Community: BookShop

The Musicians' Bible 2002: The Complete Guide to the Music Business  John Collis : This really is the bible for musicians and bands - crammed full of contacts for all areas of the music industry : recording studios, mobile studios, music organisations, artist management, booking agent, record companies, publishers, pressers and duplicators, distibutors and music press. Offers insightful chapters of advice on equpiment, demos, publishing, copyright and the law, promotion and publicity, running your own label, diary of a band, utilising the internet and more... I'm not sure if they plan to publish a 2003 edition, but I would definately recommend you get your hands of copy the minute they do! or you could just invest in this edition - granted, a few contacts may not be current now, but the advice on a whole range of issues is invaluable! If you're serious about getting your music out there and moving your band into the music business buy this book!!

The Guerilla Guide to the Music Business  Sarah Davis, David Laing : deals with every aspect of professional music making in today's popular music industry on both sides of the Atlantic!

The Band's Guide to Getting a Record Deal  Will Ashurst : A guide to 'making it' in music.

The Songwriter's Idea Book  Sheila Davis : a guide to designing distinctive songs - with over 40 strategies to spark the imagination, this book also discusses "the relationship between language style, personality type, and the brain, and shows how to use "whole-brain" techniques to enhance creativity and prevent writer's block..."

Running a Band as a Business  Ian Edwards, Phil Brookes, Bruce Dickinson : gives you the inside information on how to run a money-making band...

The MMF Guide To Professional Music Management  MMF : "By the industry for the industry" in-depth advice on everything from negotiating record company contracts, to maximising your merchandising, to understanding publishing deals, to handling PR.

Music: the Business: The Essential Guide to the Law and the Deals  Ann Harrison : covers music law in the UK. "Essential to everyone who wants to be in the music business, and to everyone already in the music business who wants to broaden their knowledge and put themselves on the fast track to the top...From bedroom demo to arena tour, this book highlights the impact and the potential pitfalls of new media and the Internet. Music : the Business tells you everything you need to know about how to protect your rights and maximise your earnings."

Live Sound for The Performing MusiciansPaul White : a practical guide to equipment and sound for small to medium-sized gigs. Every performing musician should read this book! Another recommended book on Live Sound is Basic Live Sound (also by Paul White).

How to Write a Hit Song: The Complete Guide to Writing and Marketing Chart-topping Lyrics & Music  Molly-Ann Leikin

The Manual: How to Have a Number One the Easy Way  Bill Drummond, Jimmy Cauty, Jon Savage (Introduction) : exactly what it says on the cover!

You Can Write Song Lyrics Terry Cox : covers basic song components, collaborative songwriting and creative ways to come up with song ideas...

The Music Business (Explained in Plain English): What Every Artist and Songwriter Should Know to Avoid Getting Ripped Off!  David Naggar : exactly what it says in the title!

Thinking in Jazz: The Infinite Art of Improvisation (Chicago Studies in Ethnomusicology) Paul F. Berliner : reveals how musicians, both individually and collectively, learn to improvise. This book aims "to illuminate the distinctive creative processes that comprise improvisation."

How to DJ: The Definitive Guide to Success on the Decks  Tom Frederikse, Phil Benedictus : Topics covered include: advice on how to DJ, based on Point Blank's training course in London; interviews and tips from celebrity DJs; the technology you need and how to set it up; how to make hit records at home; an examination of music - styles, taste, media and markets; how the DJ and music business works and how to rise to the top; and lists and definitions for DJs...

The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind and Unlock the Creative Spirit  Don Campbell : One of the leading experts on sound and healing Don Campbell, shows how healthcare professionals use music to deal with everything from anxiety to cancer, even mental illness. He also attempts to illustrate how the Mozart Effect can improve memory, strengthen listening abilities, raise IQ and treat up to 50 common conditions.

Indirect Procedures: A Musician's Guide to the Alexander Technique (Clarendon Paperbacks)  Pedro de Alcantara

Mind and Muscle  Elizabeth Langford

How to Write Songs on Guitar  Rikky Rooksby : how to create songs to be played on guitar... including all the basics - structure, rhythm, melody and lyrics....

The Use of the Self  F. Matthias Alexander, Wilfred Barlow (Introduction) : "The world famous classic by the originator of the Alexander Technique"

Fundamentals of Musical Acoustics  Arthur Benade

The Score: Interviews with Film Composers  Michael Schelle : A collection of lively, in-depth conversations with contemporary film composers of every style...

Emotion and Meaning in Music  Leonard B. Meyer : Analyzes the meaning expressed in music, the social and psychological sources of meaning, and the methods of musical communication.

Conducting Technique for Beginners and Professionals  Brock McElheran : accepted as a standard text for both choral and orchestral conducting courses taught at universities, colleges, and conservatories throughout the English-speaking world.

The Inner Game of Music  Barry Green : Many musicians face an inner battle against nervousness, self-doubt and fear of failure. To combat this, this title explains the principles of "natural learning". Features include ensemble playing, improvisation, listening skills and exercises that help intonation, artistic phrasing and technique.

Making Music with the Young Child with Special Needs: A Guide for Parents  Elaine Streeter : designed to help to make the most of the child's interest in music, as early as possible, by describing ways in which music can be used and providing practical help in starting to play simple musical instruments with the child...

Zen Guitar  Philip Toshio Sudo : Draws on Eastern religion to present a series of life lessons through the metaphor of music to "help readers live their lives with purpose, contemplation, and harmony."

Improvising Jazz (A Fireside Book)  Jerry Coker : A musician's guide to developing an individual jazz style through variations in melody, harmony, and rhythm.

The Great Rock Discography  John Peel (Foreword), Martin C. Strong : "bible for all popular music fans...The Great Rock Discography crams in all the facts and figures you'll need - and gives informative and opinionated pieces on recommended listening and band histories."

The Great Alternative and Indie Discography  Martin Strong : "A guide to the cutting-edge of musical experimentation..."

Little Labels - Big Sound: Small Record Companies and the Rise of American Music  Al Kooper (Foreword), Rick Kennedy, Randy McNutt : "From the 1920s to the 1960s, many small, independent American record companies nurtured jazz, blues, gospel, country, rhythm `n' blues and rock `n' roll. This is a celebration of 10 popular record labels - the music, the people, and the small homegrown companies who produced the music on primitive equipment." [synopsis]

Sniffin' Glue: The Catalogue of Chaos 1976-1977  Mark Perry, Mark Perry : the most influential rock magazine of its time...Sniffin' Glue

The Business of Artist Management: A Practical Guide to Successful Strategies for Career Development in the Music Business for Musicians, Managers, Music Publishers, and Record Companies : "Formerly entitled "Successful Artist Management", this book is designed as a reference work for artist management in the music business."

Pentatonic Scales for the Jazz Rock Keyboardist  Jeff Burns

How to DJ (Properly)  Bill Brewster, Frank Broughton

Fundamentals of Musical Composition  Arnold Schoenberg, Gerald Strang (Editor), Leonard Stein (Editor)

Structural Functions of Harmony  Arnold Schoenberg, Leonard Stein (Translator)

The Study of Counterpoint  J.J. Fux

The Study of Fugue  Alfred Mann

The Piano: Evolution and Design  David Crombie : Featuring more than 150 specially commissioned photographs, a survey of the development of the piano from the 1700s to the present day, with information on the workings of the piano, an A-Z of makers, a discography and details of composers, musicians and personalities connected with the piano...

First Steps in Music Theory  Eric Taylor - Associated Board of the Royal School of Music : highly recommended, this handy little reference book splits up the theory material into graded chapters (grades 1-5). Simple explanation makes this an essential theory reference for the first grades. If you need a more indepth explanation look no further than the AB Guide to Music Theory - available in 2 volumes : The AB Guide to Music Theory Vol 1 covers grades 1-5 and The AB Guide to Music Theory Vol 2 covers grades 6-8. Crammed full of everything you need to know in order to take on those theory grades - and essential for every practising musician!!

If you're looking for recommended piano, violin, or harp sheet music, you may enjoy browsing the selection suggested at doh-re-mi. Click here to have a look! Otherwise, try one of the specific search result links below....

This could turn into one rather long list of books if I added all the essential instrumental books and music scores - so instead I've created some specific search result links to help you find the books and sheet music you want. Use the text links below to browse the individual categories [if I've omitted your instrument please let me know and I'll add it to the list]:

Please try the following book search results for a wide range of musical styles and periods - again, I'm sure I've missed off a fair few genres, so if you want to see specific categories added, let me know! In the meantime...happy surfin'

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