Years of classroom experience and a thoughtful reappraisal of the skills needed in today’s musical world are reflected in Ralph Turek's new theory text. This unique project merges traditional topics such as part writing (pared and prioritized in light of current practice) and harmony (diatonic, chromatic, neotonal and atonal) with less traditional topics such as counterpoint and musical process, and with non-traditional topics such as popular-based song writing and harmonic principles in jazz and the blues.

In a style that reads more like a novel than a textbook, Theory for Today's Musician employs precise and articulate prose seasoned with “a pinch of humor, a sprinkle of analogy, and a dash of vignette.” It considers the classical, folk, popular, and jazz repertoires in equal measure, probing connections among them and offering fresh and unique perspectives. In support of his guiding principle that “If they’re not reachable, they’re not teachable,” the author has scoured the classical literature in search of familiar examples not often included in theory texts and has chosen popular, jazz, TV, and film-score examples for their durability and interest. The single-volume text is packaged with a CD-ROM containing over 350 music examples; a student workbook, and a workbook CD-ROM are available for separate purchase.