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This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession
by Daniel J. Levitin
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About This Book
ISBN13: 9780525949695 |
Powells.com Staff Pick
A revelation for music buffs and science geeks — and all the better if you happen to be both. How do memory and music work together? What makes timbre? How do writers like Lennon and McCartney, or John Coltrane and Miles Davis, manipulate our expectations to create truly original compositions? Why do some melodies elicit consistent emotional responses across cultures, race, gender, and age? Before he became a neuroscientist, Daniel J. Levitin was a music producer and professional musician. This Is Your Brain on Music connects those two worlds, of music production and reception, with ear-opening results.
Recommended by Dave, Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Publisher Comments:
Whether you load your iPod with Bach or Bono, music has a significant role in your life — even if you never realized it. Why does music evoke such powerful moods? The answers are at last becoming clear, thanks to revolutionary neuroscience and the emerging field of evolutionary psychology. Both a cutting-edge study and a tribute to the beauty of music itself, This Is Your Brain on Music unravels a host of mysteries that affect everything from pop culture to our understanding of human nature, including:
- Are our musical preferences shaped in utero?
- Is there a cutoff point for acquiring new tastes in music?
- What do PET scans and MRIs reveal about the brain�s response to music?
- Is musical pleasure different from other kinds of pleasure?
Review:
"Think of a song that resonates deep down in your being. Now imagine sitting down with someone who was there when the song was recorded and can tell you how that series of sounds was committed to tape, and who can also explain why that particular combination of rhythms, timbres and pitches has lodged in your memory, making your pulse race and your heart swell every time you hear it. Remarkably, Levitin does all this and more, interrogating the basic nature of hearing and of music making (this is likely the only book whose jacket sports blurbs from both Oliver Sacks and Stevie Wonder), without losing an affectionate appreciation for the songs he's reducing to neural impulses. Levitin is the ideal guide to this material: he enjoyed a successful career as a rock musician and studio producer before turning to cognitive neuroscience, earning a Ph.D. and becoming a top researcher into how our brains interpret music. Though the book starts off a little dryly (the first chapter is a crash course in music theory), Levitin's snappy prose and relaxed style quickly win one over and will leave readers thinking about the contents of their iPods in an entirely new way." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Book News Annotation:
Levitin (psychology of electronic communication, McGill U., Canada)
is a former record producer, sound engineer, and session musician.
Here he describes music from the perspective of cognitive
neuroscience and examines recent studies that tie it to meaning and
pleasure. He first explains the elements of music in a way that is
both detailed and accessible to general readers, then outlines how
the brain understands it. The mind develops expectations of music, he
says, and creates categories. Other chapters look into the concept of
emotion, musical preferences, and whether talent is inherent or can
be learned. Finally, he considers music and evolutionary theory.
Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Review:
"Levitin makes the science of music readily understandable to the non-scientist and non-musician alike." Kirkus Reviews
Review:
"[Levitin] argues...that music plays a role in evolution....[T]his book extends the appreciation of music as neural training." Library Journal
Review:
"[Levitin's] book introduces the inner workings of the brain insofar as scientists understand it and affords a good first look at the subject for armchair psychologists and neuroscientists." Booklist
Review:
"Endlessly stimulating, a marvelous overview, and one which only a deeply musical neuroscientist could give. Daniel Levitin has a huge knowledge of music developed since the 1950s (and of blues, jazz, and etc. before this), and not merely a formal but a deep personal knowledge as an expert performer no less than as a listener. I liked the discussion of 'safe' and 'dangerous' music, and I very much liked the final chapter on the evolutionary origins of music. An important book."
Oliver Sacks, M.D.
Review:
"Although Levitin's narrative grasp may be shaky, the arc of his transformation from musician to scientist grounds his thinking and guides his treatise to a satisfying conclusion." Los Angeles Times
Review:
"Setting jargon aside in favor of everyday terminology, [Levitin] gives readers enough background to understand what to listen for in music and to connect what they hear to his science." Seattle Times
Review:
"Levitin makes a strong case....He also has a warm, modest and compassionate voice, and his little asides of music trivia and nerdy jokes are more like sprinkles of sugar than spoonfuls, but they help just the same." San Diego Union-Tribune
About the Author
Daniel J. Levitin runs the Levitin Laboratory for Musical Perception, Cognition, and Expertise at McGill University, where he holds the Bell Chair in the Psychology of Electronic Communications. Before becoming a neuroscientist, he was a record producer with gold records to his credit and professional musician. He has published extensively in scientific journals and music trade magazines such as Grammy and Billboard.
What Our Readers Are Saying
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Average customer rating based on 3 comments:
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jen in takoma park, March 13, 2008 (view all comments by jen in takoma park)
this is first time i can remember reading a non-fiction book and being really sad that it was over. i loved this book. i think anyone remotely interested in music or how our brains work will really enjoy it.
i took "cognitive science" in college and thought it was boring and confusing. i think the difference between that class and my appreciation of the subject now is all based on how the material is presented. mr. levitan is a great teacher. this book makes me want to go back to school and study the cognitive science of music, with him as my professor.
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anilreddy_p, February 16, 2007 (view all comments by anilreddy_p)
The name of the book captures the creativity of the onlookers.
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aznstar4yo0, October 24, 2006 (view all comments by aznstar4yo0)
This book is very awesome! Even the title draw me into it for I did my senior project about the brain that works towards music. I learned so many different things about this book that blew me away. It is amazing how your brain works with music.
View all 3 comments
Product Details
- ISBN:
- 9780525949695
- Subtitle:
- The Science of a Human Obsession
- Author:
- Author:
- Author:
- Publisher:
- Dutton Books
- Subject:
- Neuropsychology
- Subject:
- Philosophy & Social Aspects
- Subject:
- Music
- Subject:
- Psychological aspects
- Subject:
- Acoustics & Sound
- Subject:
- Instruction & Study - Theory
- Copyright:
- 2006
- Publication Date:
- August 2006
- Binding:
- Hardcover
- Language:
- English
- Illustrations:
- Y
- Pages:
- 314
- Dimensions:
- 9.32x6.30x1.10 in. 1.10 lbs.
