The Music Instinct

All human cultures seem to make music - today and through history. But why they do so, why music can excite deep passions, and how we make sense of musical sound at all are questions that have, until recently, remained profoundly mysterious. Now in "The Music Instinct" Philip Ball provides the first comprehensive, accessible survey of what is known - and what is still unknown - about how music works its magic, and why, as much as eating and sleeping, it seems indispensable to humanity. Even with what appear to be the simplest of tunes, the brain is performing some astonishing gymnastics: finding patterns and regularities, forming interpretations and expectations that create a sense of aesthetic pleasure. Without requiring any specialist knowledge of music or science, "The Music Instinct" explores how the latest research in music psychology and brain science is piecing together the puzzle of how our minds understand and respond to music. Ranging from Bach fugues to Javanese gamelan, from nursery rhymes to heavy rock, Philip Ball interweaves philosophy, mathematics, history and neurology to reveal why music moves us in so many ways. "The Music Instinct" will not only deepen your appreciation of the music you love, but will also guide you into pastures new, opening a window on music that once seemed alien, dull or daunting. And it offers a passionate plea for the importance of music in education and in everyday life, arguing that, whether we know it or not, we can all claim to be musical experts.

ISBN 1847920888   Pages 464 ISBN13 9781847920881 (What's this?)   Weight (grammes) 780 Publisher Vintage   Published in London Imprint The Bodley Head Ltd   Height (mm) 241 Format Hardback   Width (mm) 162 Publication date 04 Feb 2010   Spine width (mm) 38 DEWEY 780.1   Academic level General DEWEY edition DC22

1		Prelude: The Harmonious Universe		1
2		Overture: Why We Sing		9
3		Staccato: The Atoms of Music		32
4		Andante: What's In a Tune?		91
5		Legato: Keeping it Together		137
6		Tutti: All Together Now		163
7		Con Moto: Slave to the Rhythm		207
8		Pizzicato: The Colour of Music		228
9		Misterioso: All in the Mind		240
10		Appassionatio: Light My Fire		254
11		Capriccioso: Going In and Out of Style		322
12		Parlando: Why Music Talks to Us		355
13		Serioso: The Meaning of Music		381
		Coda: The Condition of Music		409
		Credits		413
		Notes		415
		Bibliography		425
		Index		443

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