Why does twentieth-century music sound the way it does? What strategies did composers use in the twentieth century, and how did history and philosophy influence their creative processes? These and other questions are discussed in the newly published The Big Composers Cookery Book: strategies and structures in new music from 1900-present by Peter-Jan Wagemans.

Similarly to Dutch composer Ton de Leeuw's 1964 publication Muziek uit de twintigste eeuw (Music of the 20th century), Wagemans puts...