Marsalis on Music, the illustrated companion book-with-CD to Wynton Marsalis's groundbreaking television series, is the perfect introduction to the joy of music, both classical and jazz, for families, young people, and music-hungry readers of all ages.

In chapters that correspond to the four one-hour programs in the series, and a Listening Guide and audio CD prepared exclusively for the book, Wynton Marsalis uses wonderfully appealing examples and analogies to communicate the fundamentals of music.

Whether likening the rhythmic structures of music to playing basketball, teaching sonata form through a story about chasing a pet hamster through a shopping mall, or revealing the connections between classical music and jazz, Marsalis on Music makes so-called "difficult" music vivid, immediately graspable, and most of all fun.

Produced by an Emmy Award-winning team from Sony Classical Film & Video, the television and home video series "Marsalis on Music" was shot at the Tanglewood Music Center with the participation of Seiji Ozawa, Yo-Yo Ma, the Wynton Marsalis Septet, the Liberty Brass Band, the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, and an excited audience of young people. Its premiere around the world in 1995 includes broadcasts in the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and Europe.