Transported: The Everyday Magic of Musical Daydreams

by Elizabeth Margulis

A song comes on—and suddenly, you’re somewhere else.


Reliving past heartbreak. Picturing a serene future. Imagining a fantastical scene. Across genres, music has an uncanny ability to carry us into distinct inner worlds.

In Transported, acclaimed music cognition researcher Elizabeth Margulis explores the phenomenon of musical daydreams—the vivid, spontaneous, emotionally charged images, stories, and memories we lapse into while listening to music—and argues that these everyday reveries offer a powerful and underappreciated window into how we think, feel, and connect.

Combining cutting-edge neuroscience, psychology, ethnography, and revelations from her own teaching and pathbreaking research, Margulis shows not only that musical imaginings are widespread and meaningful—but also that daydreams which seem deeply personal are often widely shared. Music can alleviate anxiety, ignite creativity, and foster connection in our increasingly fragmented era.

At a time when attention is perpetually under siege, Transported makes a powerful case for music as one of the last spaces where the mind is still free to wander—and reminds us that these wanderings are more meaningful and more important to our individual and collective well-being than we’ve ever realized.

Genres: Music

240 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication May 19, 2026

About the author

Elizabeth Margulis is a researcher in music cognition as well as a trained pianist. She is Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Music at Princeton University, where she directs the Music Cognition Lab.

Transported: The Everyday Magic of Musical Daydreams (Liveright, May 2026) is her first book for general readers. It explores the science behind how music sends us somewhere else, into a personal memory or a vividly imagined scene--a powerful but often overlooked aspect of everyday listening.