Author Description

Chamber music, a cornerstone of Western classical music, has held significant importance since its emergence in the 16th century. This book focuses on piano chamber music, taking classic ensemble works for piano with strings and winds as its core subject, and systematically traces the artistic evolution of Western piano chamber music. In academia, European and American conservatories have long made chamber music a compulsory course, yielding abundant theoretical research. In contrast, while China has seen a surge of interest in chamber music this century, scholarly work remains in its early stages, with no dedicated studies on Western piano chamber music. This book fills that gap, offering pioneering insights. Structured clearly with an introduction and five main chapters, the book begins by defining the concepts, characteristics, origins, and development of chamber music and piano chamber music. Subsequent chapters explore keyboard chamber music in the Baroque era, followed by piano chamber music in the Classical, Romantic, Nationalist, and 20th-century periods. By analyzing representative works from each era, the book delves into their aesthetic qualities and artistic depth, presenting a coherent historical trajectory. An invaluable resource, it serves both music professionals and enthusiasts as a comprehensive reference.