The Music Instinct: How Music Works and Why We Can't Do Without It

✍ Scribed by Philip Ball

• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 463
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

From Bach fugues to Indonesian gamelan, from nursery rhymes to rock, music has cast its light onto every corner of human culture. But why music excites such deep passions, and how we make sense of musical sound at all have, until recently, remained mysterious. Now in The Music Instinct, award-winning writer Philip Ball provides the first comprehensive, accessible survey of what is known--and still unknown--about how music works its magic, and why, as much as eating and sleeping, it seems indispensable to humanity. Deftly weaving together the latest findings in brain science with history, mathematics, and philosophy, The Music Instinct not only deepens our appreciation of the music we love, but shows that we would not be ourselves without it. The Sunday Times hailed it as "a wonderful account of why music matters," with Ball's "passion for music evident on every page."

✦ Table of Contents

Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 8
Author’s Note......Page 10
1 Prelude: The Harmonious Universe: An Introduction......Page 12
2 Overture: Why We Sing: What is music and where does it come from?......Page 20
3 Staccato: The Atoms of Music: What are musical notes and how do we decide which to use?......Page 43
4 Andante: What’s In a Tune?: Do melodies follow rules, and if so, which?......Page 102
5 Legato: Keeping It Together: How do we decode the sound?......Page 148
6 Tutti: All Together Now: How do we use more than one note at a time?......Page 174
7 Con Moto: Slave to the Rhythm: What gives music its pulse?......Page 218
8 Pizzicato: The Colour of Music: Why do instruments sound different, and how does that affect the music?......Page 239
9 Misterioso: All In the Mind: Which bits of the brain do we use for music?......Page 251
10 Appassionato: Light My Fire: How does music convey and elicit emotion?......Page 265
11 Capriccioso: Going In and Out of Style: What are musical styles? Is music about notes, or patterns, or textures?......Page 333
12 Parlando: Why Music Talks to Us: Is music a language? Or is it closer to the non-verbal arts?......Page 366
13 Serioso: The Meaning of Music: What are composers and musicians trying to say? Can music in itself say anything at all?......Page 392
Coda: The Condition of Music......Page 420
Credits......Page 424
Notes......Page 426
Bibliography......Page 436
B......Page 454
C......Page 455
E......Page 456
H......Page 457
K......Page 458
M......Page 459
P......Page 460
S......Page 461
V......Page 462
Z......Page 463