It's tempting to say, 'There can't be too many books on musical
instruments'… their history, origins and development; acoustics
and sound production; place in musics from around the world;
oddities and 'records'; not to mention how to play them. Indeed
the field is rich with several classics and soi-disant
'definitive' volumes. But there is always room for another book
on instruments – if it's well-written, covers the 'right' ground
meticulously and, perhaps, exposes something new. 'Musical
Instruments: History, Technology and Performance of Instruments
of Western Music' by Donald Murray Campbell, Clive Alan Greated,
Arnold Myers fits that bill well and can be recommended for
specialists, students, researchers and general music lovers
alike. The key words, though, are definitely '…of Western
Music': the authors have chosen to concentrate on instruments
used in the musical traditions which use written notation. This
means not only (though mainly) European and (north) American
'classical', but also ecclesiastic