This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession.

THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC: The Science of a Human Obsession 

DANIEL J. LEVITIN

There is evidence that music of one form or another has been an integral part of human culture since its beginnings. That tradition continues in all cultures, writes Levitin, a neuroscientist with a background in music production and performance. Here, he reviews the science behind many people's obsession with music, how music is able to convey and conjure up emotion, how it is processed by the brain, and how even the musical novice has an inherent ability to recognize musical features such as key, meter, and timbre. Levitin begins by defining music, explaining how its pitches have remained essentially the same since the time of the Greeks and how instruments have been invented to expand available sounds. He ponders people's remarkable memory for music, an ability that can occasionally be burdensome: when you can't get that stupid jingle out of your head. He looks at how expert musicians are different from casual listeners and considers whether musical ability is partially genetic. Music, Levitin writes, lies at the heart of human nature. Dutton, 2006, 314 p., hardcover, $24.95.