A compelling celebration of the world’s most important and influential composers from the medieval period to the present day, this book explores the fascinating stories of their lives and key works.

Lavishly illustrated with paintings or photographs of each composer, alongside original musical scores and personal correspondence, Composers Who Changed History reveals the fascinating stories of their lives, loves, and enduring musical compositions.

Introduced with a stunning portrait of each featured composer, entries explore the key influences, themes, and working methods of everyone, setting their works within a wider historical and cultural context. Illustrated with images of their homes and studios, personal effects and other important artifacts, profiles offer revealing insights into what drove everyone to create the musical masterpieces—symphonies, concertos, and operatic scores—that changed the direction of classical music and are still celebrated and treasured today.

Charting the development of classical music and music movements across the centuries, Composers Who Changed History provides a compelling glimpse into the personal lives, loves, and influences of the giants of the classical music canon.