This comprehensive and accessible book focuses on the professional, cultural and historical environments in which Mozart operated, and how they influenced his output. The concise, topic-based essays will appeal to students, researchers and music lovers wishing to deepen their understanding of this outstanding composer and his world.

Provides a guide to the contexts of The Beatles' unparalleled cultural achievements, from their early performances to cultural legacy. Wide-ranging chapters are devoted to the many and varied influences on their lives and works and demonstrate the profound and enduring nature of the band's relationship with people, place, media and politics.

A collection of specifically commissioned essays on a range of topics that contextualize the life and works of Richard Strauss, one of the most prolific composers of the past 150 years. Moving beyond biography, the chapters within explore facets of the music profession that are broadly applicable to musical studies of the era.