One place to find answers is The Gramophone ClassicalMusic
Guide 2010 (Omnibus Press). Following Jeremy Nichols’ insightful
introductory essay, “1000 Years of Music,” the Guide becomes an encyclopedia of composers, from the 18th-century
German Carl Friedrich Abel to the 20th century Austrian Alexander Zemlinksy.
The descriptions of each composer are crisp and lucid and
include recommended recordings (complete with catalog numbers) of the works in
question. Following the lexicon of composers come similar, alphabetical
sections on conductors, instrumentalists, singers and ensembles. No mere
compendium of dry facts, the Gramophone
Guide is fun to read for its critical insights into the music and its
performers. It would be even more fun if the typeface was larger, but in that
case the Guide would run to several volumes.
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