Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy

Bringing together discoveries from neurophysiology, psychology, music theory, and philosophy, Robert Jourdain moves from the simplest aspects of music, such as sound and tone, to the more complex, like composition and performance. In clear, accessible language, Robert Jourdain writes about the extraordinary array of physical and mental functions involved in the appreciation of music.

Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy is divided into chapters on the basics of sound and aspects of music and the way music is perceived, then it considers the neurological and emotional adaptations of composers and musicians to the demands of the music. He notes that there is no proof that any particular brand of emotionality is tied to musical greatness.

Stretching the mind in every dimension that music occupies, Robert Jourdain encourages one to think like a paleontologist, a neurophysiologist, an acoustician, a psychophysicist, a musicologist, a composer, a performer, a sociologist, a linguist, and a philosopher. He looks at the evolution of music, and introduces surprising new concepts of memory and perception, knowledge and attention, motion and emotion, all at work as music takes hold.