This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession
by Daniel J. Levitin
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The author argues for the “democratizing” notion that almost anyone can become a great musician with enough hard work, using examples such as Stevie Wonder, Mozart, and conservatory students who tracked their practice hours. He speaks of the benefits of listening to the music of our choice as a mood regulator and motivator, citing higher levels of dopamine and lower levels of cortisol in listeners. Especially useful in running, for example, is listening to music at a slightly faster tempo than you would normally achieve.
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Addressing the question of why we are hard-wired to love music, the author explains that brain scans show that there is an enormous network in the brain, crossing both halves and going into the limbic system, that is activated by music, suggesting that music has “an ancient evolutionary origin.” He notes that unlike the visual arts, music is ephemeral and leaves no trace (before recording) so we can only make inferences from early instruments, such as a bone flute that dates back around 60,000 years.
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To prove to the audience that we are all musical experts, in the sense that we can recognize out-of-tune notes just as we recognize malformed sentences in our language, the author plays slightly altered music and asks them to raise their hands when they hear the changes. In agreement with the “10,000 hour rule,” he asserts that we would not be interested in the (albeit precocious) drawings of a nine-year-old Picasso or the symphonies of a four-year old Mozart if they had not gone on to produce greater works.
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Author presents for ideaCity with slides and music
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Calling the human brain “a giant change detector,” the author proves to the audience that they can recognize bits of Beethoven’s Fifth when played on power tools and the Nutcracker Suite when played by mandolins. He explains that different parts of the brain do different things, tracked by the flow of blood in the brain. Music, however, engages nearly every part of the brain that has been mapped so far. The brain responds to music as it does to other pleasurable activities such as sex and eating chocolate.
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