It is a useful resource if only for the novelty of the large amount and variety of techniques and issues addressed in the space of a single text. The most grievous is the fact that Cope composes his own musical examples rather than reprinting excerpts from other composers' works. In addition, it should be supplemented generously with the original scores of the works whose techniques Cope addresses. The authorial tone throughout is both incisive and non-patronizing, always welcoming and encouraging no matter the level of complexity or abstractness inherent in the basic concepts being discussed. Several of the music examples are also available in standard MIDI file format and can be downloaded from Cope's Internet site at UC Santa Cruz.
Several chapters stand out as notable and of potential pedagogical use.
Chapter 2, The Tonal Legacy, encompasses chromaticism and polytonality. Chapter 8, Rhythm and Meter, covers among other areas metric modulation and proportional notation. Chapter 10, Microtones, deals with equal temperament, intonation, and tuning systems. The strongest chapter, I believe, is chapter 20, Experimental Music, as Cope is on firm ground here and not merely attempting to cover a wide variety of genres for the purpose of writing an authoritative textbook. The most grievous is the fact that Cope composes his own musical examples rather than reprinting excerpts from other composers' works.