Staff Picks
The Science of Music
- Sarah C.
- Friday, December 21, 2018
Collection
Explore everything from the natural origins of music to the way sound affects the human brain with these fascinating reads!
The Jazz of Physics
The Secret Link Between Music and the Structure of the Universe
Published in 2016
The Universal Sense
How Hearing Shapes the Mind
Published in 2012
"Every day, we are beset by millions of sounds-ambient ones like the rumble of the train and the hum of air conditioner, as well as more pronounced sounds, such as human speech, music, and sirens. But how do we process what we hear every day? This book answers such revealing questions as: Why do we often fall asleep on train rides or in the car, and what does it have to do with hearing? What is it about the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard that makes us cringe? Why do city folks have trouble sleeping in the country, and vice versa? Why can't you get that jingle out of your head? Starting with the basics of the biology, neuroscientist and musician Seth Horowitz explains how sound affects us, and in turn, how we've learned to manipulate sound: into music, commercial jingles, car horns, and modern inventions like cochlear implants, ultrasound scans, and the mosquito ringtone. Combining the best parts of This is Your Brain on Music and How We Decide, this book gives new insight into what the sounds of our world have to do with the way we think, feel, and interact"-- Provided by publisher.
The Great Animal Orchestra
Finding the Origins of Music in the World's Wild Places
Published in 2012
Music and the Mind
Published in 1993
Storr, the bestselling author of Solitude, explores the intimate effects of music, and the reasons for its central place in our lives. He traces the origins of music and its functional development in society as entertainment, communication, and therapy, making a powerful argument for the universality and centrality of music.