Music in Ibero-America to 1850

When Latin Americans think of high art they do so primarily in terms of literature and the visual arts. In addition, the study of the first three centuries has until recently taken the back seat in the standard literature dealing with the music of that part of the world. This trend must be reversed for the lands south of the border to arrive at a broader understanding of their place in the world culture. This book attempts to redress the situation by providing the curious layman and the serious researcher with the tools to further clarify the role of cultivated music in the early life of the Ibero-American countries. It surveys the available historical data on personalities, events, and institutions that shaped the history of art music in Ibero-America (that is, its Spanish-speaking countries and Brazil) between the arrival of the Europeans in 1492 and 1850.

This study of Music and Music Activities in Ibero-America to 1850 emphasizes historical data rather than musical analysis. Folk and popular music are mentioned only to the extent that they have affected the cultivated strains of Ibero-American music. Of interest to music historians and students of Ibero-American culture.