¿Por qué una interpretación musical puede emocionar hasta las lágrimas y otra impulsar a bailar o a dar palmas? ¿Es posible que un niño reconozca una canción que oyó en el útero materno? ¿Por qué composiciones que utilizan determinados ritmos motivan a hacer ejercicio en el gimnasio? La larga tradición que vincula el hecho musical con la mente humana, intensificada en las últimas décadas, ha dado lugar a lo que se conoce como psicología de la música, que presta atención en igual medida a la composición, la ejecución, la escucha o la apreciación de esta última. En esta breve introducción, E. H. Margulis (figura sumamente prestigiosa en este campo) conecta esta ciencia con otras áreas más amplias relacionadas con la música suscitando reflexiones y examinando cuestiones que sin duda han de interesar no sólo a músicos, intérpretes, musicoterapeutas o musicólogos, sino también al público general. >
A good introduction to the psychology of music, being easy to read yet providing a helpful overview of the field. A heavy focus on how music is similar and connected to language, its potential biological underpinnings, and the endless limitations of scientifically studying music, always fighting between unrealistic scenarios with poor ecological validity and rich real-life situations that are difficult to control.
I liked the emphasizes of the bias of studying Western music and how the field needs a continuous collaboration between science and philosophy. My only criticism is that I often found the book a bit too technical, from someone is little to no musical knowledge. This made some parts of the book not really understandable without knowing basic music theory. It would have been helpful to have an introduction to the concepts or try to explain the topic from a less technical angle.
Music relies on a diffuse array of neural circuitry, and musicality likely depends on other capacities that evolved to support more clearly survival-enhancing functions. Its meaning emerges out of an interplay between mind and culture. Comparing music with language gives us insights into many aspects of its nature. It is implicitly a participatory activity and intrinsically has a social and communicative function. It is also subconsciously contextual. Professor Margulis describes the neuroscience underlying music, and explains (but not necessarily explains away) what previously seemed ineffable. Ample evidences are provided and interpretative rigour is emphasised. Those on child development and child psychology are particularly illuminating. Readers will no doubt gain a comprehensive understanding on this captivating human behaviour. My own take is that music heightens emotional experiences in an implicit and intrinsically social way that can engender peak insights about the human condition itself. Four stars.
Se trata de una buena introducción a esta disciplina para los aficionados a la música, a la psicología o a ambas, aunque el lenguaje es en ocasiones un tanto ampuloso, no sé si por razones de estilo o porque la autora esté empleando el vocabulario que se pueda emplear en las publicaciones sobre el tema. El libro revela datos muy interesantes, y además pone de manifiesto lo mucho que aún se ignora en psicología de la música, los límites y dificultades intrínsecas a la investigación, y cuál puede ser el futuro de esta disciplina.
A very interesting introduction to music psychology, including not only significant findings about the performers and audiences, but also the limitations and challenges of the field (e.g., how to do objective research on the ineffable, and the need for more cross-cultural study). The reader should know enough about music to understand terms such as "interval" and "chord", but one's background need not go deeper than that. The notes and further reading sections are nicely filled out.
"oh, you wanted to actually learn the answers to the questions asked on the back of the book? here's a whole chapter about a random science experiment from 100 years ago." i understand it's from oxford, but it still read a little too much like a copy and pasted college lecture. still very informative, and reading anything about music is interesting enough. just wish it did a little more, very mid.
If you are someone who loves music but also has an interest in science and the humanities, this is an amazing book to read. It takes a brief overview of the topic and drops in some information about relevant experiments and studied to the topic at hand. It is both interesting and thought provoking and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
Music is innately human, yet inherently different across cultural demarcations. In order to truly get to the heart of it all, one has to blend musical expertise, understanding of psychology, and reverence for the sacred human experience of it all.