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This Is Your Brain on Music
- The Science of a Human Obsession
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
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This Is Your Brain on Music
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Publisher's Summary
And, taking on prominent thinkers who argue that music is nothing more than an evolutionary accident, Levitin argues that music is fundamental to our species, perhaps even more so than language. This Is Your Brain on Music is an unprecedented, eye-opening investigation into an obsession at the heart of human nature.
What the critics say
"Levitin is a deft and patient explainer of the basics for the non-scientist as well as the non-musician....By tracing music's deep ties to memory, Levitin helps quantify some of music's magic without breaking its spell." ( Los Angeles Times Book Review)
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What listeners say about This Is Your Brain on Music
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Scott Mackintosh
- 2021-01-14
Great if you are writing a PhD on music
The narrator did a good job presenting the material. The material would be interesting and useful if you were doing a PhD in music. As a parent I was hoping to get a better understanding of how music might influence kids that have ADHD and other mental health issues. From that perspective there wasn't a lot here. There also didn't seem to be much structure to how the information was presented nor did it rap in to any meaningful kind of a conclusion. Unless you are a serious scholar on this topic you are not going to enjoy this book in my opinion.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2020-02-26
Full of chewy thoughts
Insightful and well constructed. Excellent pacing and well read. Will listen to it many times
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- iam1smiley1
- 2019-10-31
Well worth the listen!
You'll never see your brain and music the same again. Easy to follow and the reader has a wonderful voice 🤣
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- ROLANDO
- 2008-03-12
Interesting, but Abridged?
I have always been intrigued with this subject and always wondered why we enjoy music so much, and how our brains evolved to interpret it the way we do.
I listened to every word on this book, and I welcomed the detailed explanation of musical terms and definitions. But I finished wishing that I had listened to the unabridged version. There was a big gap between the study of our the connections between our reptilian and rational brains, and the cultural reasons (mostly sexual) for using music as an expression of ourselves.
I really enjoyed the fact that the author took the time to insert musical examples. Usually audio books are basically read aloud, but this one includes music. I wish it had more of it.
Because the book was abridged, I was left with that strange feeling we get when we listen to a beautiful musical piece, and the last note is left unplayed. A feeling of incompleteness, but the knowledge that the author meant well. If you can deal with those feelings, then buy the audio book. If not, I suggest you read it the old fashioned way.
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55 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Paul D Alexander
- 2007-09-06
Intricate Reading
I advice a core group of musicians and people whose livelihood depend on music to view this book as compulsory. Orchestral composers and conductors, program directors and any student of music all should add this book to their cart and buy it NOW! The information this book contains is simply too foundational and new to pass up.
As a critique of the book, there are two general ways in which I perceive this book. First, it is a very intricate review of how our brains process music. I have a general interest in the neurology of psychology and Daniel Levitin proves to be very informative, thus making his book interesting to me. On the flip side of this (my second perception), the presentation is dry. It reminds me of the book "Getting to Yes" (Fisher, Ury & Patton) in that it is good information delivered in nearly monolithically by a narrator. I feel like I am having information downloaded into my thinking brain while my emotional brain is ignoring everything said. Where as Stephen Covey's "The 8th Habit" is read by Stephen Covey, himself, with complete sincerity and from his heart, "This is Your Brain on Music" is tough to listen to considering the intricate details and monotone narrator.
Last, considering the topic, music, I think Levitin had a perfect opportunity to go much further using this audio book as a tool. While there are simple examples of music to support points that Levintin is making, not once when he mentions an actual song does he then play the actual recording of the song on the audio tape. Yes, there are legal recording ownership rights that Levintin would have to negotiate in order to play song recordings on this audio book, but it would have enhanced the book tremendously. Additionally, when speaking about tone and tambour, examples rapidly inserted at the referenced points in the book would have helped. To be fair, I should mention that I am the executive producer of a radio program; I am sensitive to these quality issues.
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42 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Paul Mullen
- 2007-09-12
Neuroscience for the right brain
If you have an interest in how the brain works, and you like music, you'll enjoy this book. The author gives some great vocabulary to the lay person to help to describe music in precise terms without getting too technical. The book walks through the interaction between music and the brain functions and explores some of the ideas that are current in musico-neurophysiology. He spends the last chapter or so of the book on the evolutionary basis of music-brain interaction, which seems out of place in an otherwise cohesive study.
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23 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
- Dennis
- 2007-08-31
Mind Numbing
The studies examining the effect of music on the brain are off to an interesting start, but Levitin benumbs us with so much detail that the book quickly becomes boring. In the areas where he uses music to highlight his point, his concpts are clear, but where he tries to explain the finer points like tambre and pitch, the book sounds too much like a graduate-level lecture.
I heard Daniel Levitin at a local book store and he was terrific. The crowd, and there was quite a large one, was enthralled as was I. Levitin's studies are ground breaking and will aid science in understanding why we enjoy one type of music but not another.
I will try to finish listening to the book someday, but the first two hours were lente,lente.
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12 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Raven L.
- 2018-03-14
It skips parts
It was missing sentences from the actual book. Whole parts of paragraphs. I was very confused while reading
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11 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Marko
- 2010-12-29
Not for the novice musician...
I bought this book expecting a scientific view of how and why music works. This is one of those occasions where I would say "Be careful what you wish for because I may come true". I got exactly what I expected. Unfortunately, I was so unprepared and uneducated when it came to music that it lost me almost right away.
I would recommend this book for someone is very highly educated in music, is familiar with music terminology, and has a curiosity about the brain and our anatomy of the ear. It is very "heady" and detailed.
I imagine someone who fits the description above will very much enjoy this book and learn a lot from it.
I, on the other hand, found myself taking far too long to process some information. By the time I was able to process it, I had missed about two minutes of the audio book and had to go back.
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10 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jeff
- 2012-05-20
A VERY COOL WELL WRITTEN LISTEN
Im sorry to say that this book is even better than Oliver Sack's book on the same topic(Im a big fan of Sacks) , though both are worthy reads. Music has a profound physiological effect on us. We all know this to be the case but until now we had no concrete understanding of the hows and why's.
Levitin does a great job relating the mystery and latest scientific probings of this remarkable and profound element in all our lives. Its a fascinating listen, learning whats behind the strange power music has on all of us. Its very rewarding to know what weve learned but also peeks our interest in what revelations are just around the corner.
I think part of the reason music effects us so profoundly is it communicates to that huge yet hidden subconscious part of our minds where we think without and beyond language. Excellent narration and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Yan
- 2009-08-28
Left me wanting to hear more
This abridged edition definitely felt shortened - it did sound like many subjects were not fully fleshed out and could have used more detailed explanation.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- John A. M. Darnell
- 2007-11-29
Great mechanistic approach...
This book really is enjoyable and is accessible to anyone who understands the rudiments of science, but the listener will not hear any such words like "soul" or "spirit" in this work. Dr. Levitin spends all his efforts on describing how the box works, and very little on why or what it means. This is fine for most consumers, but I would have enjoyed a foray into that other dimension where most scientists fear to tread. Nevertheless, when all is said and done, I highly recommend it.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Jon
- 2007-08-27
technical material
The author of this book is an expert in both music and the physiology of the human brain.
The book is a tour of technical aspects of what music is and technical remarks about how music is handled by our brain.
While this book would be a wonderful read for the person able to cope with a lot of technical information, it may become hard to follow if you don't know, or particularily care, where your cerebellum is located or what a 'perfect quarter' might be.
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4 people found this helpful