Unlocking Meaning in Art Song teaches singers how to analyze the musical and textual content in songs in order to discover hidden meanings and create more compelling performances. The book features twenty chapters that each focus on a Schubert lied: chapters highlight new analytical techniques and provide a guided analysis of a song. The early part of the book features songs most often performed by beginning voice students and introduces basic elements of song analysis, while the later chapters encompass more advanced repertoire and analyses.

Even though the book focuses on Schubert lieder, the analytical techniques and skills learned in this book are applicable to all types of song repertoire, and singers will ultimately learn what to look for in a musical work when making interpretive decisions. This book will be useful for singers, voice teachers and students, collaborative pianists, and music theory instructors. Voice students can work through the guided analysis on their own, or teachers can assign chapters to students who can discuss their results in a vocal master class.

Collaborative pianists can use the chapters to assist a singer’s understanding and expression, and emerging artists can find the hidden meanings in order to rise to the next level of interpretation. Additionally, faculty in theory, analysis, and composition can use the song guides in the classroom to provide examples of different analytical topics introduced in class.