Music Hall. Katowice, Silesian, Poland. Photography by Radek Grzybowski.

“Music has charms to soothe a savage breast,” wrote the English playwright William Congreve in 1697. More than 300 years later, we continue to appreciate the power of music to modulate our emotions. But in an era when professional success and personal happiness depend to an increasing degree on our aptitude for invention, it would be equally worth knowing whether the sound of music can...