MORE THAN ten years in planning and construction, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center has become a major landmark in North Texas and a source of prestige and pride for Dallas citizens. With its combination of extraordinary acoustics, distinguished architecture, and a magnificent concert organ, the Meyerson has joined the ranks of the world's great halls, comparing favorably with Carnegie Hall, Vienna's Musikvereinssaal, and Amsterdam's Concertgebouw.

Laurie Shulman's book places the Meyerson in its socio-political context, tracing its history to the early 1970s when financial collapse...