The New Grove Dictionary of American Music is the most comprehensive and enlightening history of America's musical heritage ever published. American Grove is focused solely on the unique styles and traditions of American music. It covers popular musical forms such as country, rock, pop, soul, folk, blues, jazz, bluegrass, and big band. It explores America's vibrant classical heritage--from colonial times to John Cage--and also provides substantial articles on the traditional music of diverse cultures such as Native Americans, Jewish Americans, and Islamic Americans. The Dictionary investigates the social, cultural, and historical forces that shaped our distinctive musical identity--from the Civil War to the impact of pop culture ... the rise of technology to the plurality of religions ... from the supremacy of film to the evolution of the civil rights movement. The New Grove Dictionary of American Music includes: 3,500 biographies of significant composers, performers, singer-songwriters, impresarios, conductors, writers, producers, publishers and patrons--including foreign-born musicians who settled in America, Entries on American cities as diverse as Miami, New Orleans, Nashville, Los Angeles, and Anchorage, Wide-ranging survey articles on specialized forms of music including patriotic music, film music, vaudeville, and early music revival, Ground-breaking articles on general topics such as copyright, broadcasting, music therapy, and education, Comprehensive listings of music libraries, societies, institutions, periodicals, discographies, festivals, and awards.--Publisher description.