Gerard Behague presents five culture-, process-, and community-specific case studies of performance that challenge the assumption that contextual differences in performance and performance practice matter little in overall effect. Within the diverse performance contexts evaluated--Hindustani, Karantak, Mali, Berber, American, and Latin American music--the concept of performance practice as the integrated study of sound and context is self-evident although the nature of the empirical data gathered and the perspective and theorectical framework of each study varies significantly.