Dieterich Buxtehude, organist in Lübeck /

Snyder's long-awaited book is the first major study of Buxtehude in English. As the preeminent German composer between Bach and Schutz and the most important of the North German baroque masters, Buxtehude is worthy of this exemplary contribution, published to coincide with the 350th anniversary of his birth. Everything is here-a thorough survey of the literature; a contextual study of Buxtehude's geographical, social, and historical environment; a treatment by genre of the compositions; and a separate section of Buxtehude studies treating such matters such as sources, chronology, and performance practice. Appendixes list the compositions, writings, principal sources, selected archival and early printed source documents, and inventories of music. Each chapter's notes begin with a literature survey. Combined with the general bibliography, this overview serves as a general bibliography of the entire period. Snyder has made a major contribution to the general literature of musicology. Academic and general readers.-J.P. Ambrose, University of Vermont