Music, Thought, and Feeling Understanding the Psychology of Music

by Thompson, William Forde

• ISBN13: 9780195140859
• ISBN10: 0195140850
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-10-27
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Examining the intersection of music, psychology, and neuroscience, Music, Thought, and Feeling surveys the rapidly growing field of music cognition and explores its most interesting questions. Written in clear, engaging language that balances scientific and artistic perspectives, this book provides an excellent introduction to--and critical analysis of--the major issues in music cognition, making it ideal for courses in psychology of music. Assuming minimal background in music or psychology, the book begins with an overview of the major theories on how and when music became a widespread aspect of human behavior. It also covers: *How humans perceive music *Links between music and emotion *Modern neuroimaging techniques and what they tell us about music's effect on the brain *Psychological processes involved in imagining, composing, and performing music *Potential cognitive benefits of musical engagement Music, Thought, and Feeling references numerous "Sound Examples" and is supplemented by a companion web site (www.oup.com/us/Thompson) containing an extensive collection of music sample audio files, most created specifically for this book. In addition, the website provides a link to iTunes, where readers can access an iMix created to accompany the book.

Author Biography

William Forde Thompson is Professor of Psychology at Macquarie University, where he conducts research on music, emotion, and performance. He is President of the Society for Music Perception and Cognition (2006-2008), Associate Editor at Music Perception, and Editor of Empirical Musicology Review.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Introduction	p. 1
Learning Outcomes	p. 1
Overview of Book Contents	p. 2
Abiding Controversies	p. 8
Recent Areas of Research Growth	p. 15
Additional Readings	p. 17
Origins of Music	p. 19
Learning Outcomes	p. 19
Prehistoric Music	p. 20
Adaptationist Accounts	p. 21
Theories Based on Reproductive Benefits	p. 23
Theories Based on Survival Benefits	p. 25
Nonadaptationist Accounts	p. 32
Precursors to Music	p. 36
Additional Readings	p. 41
Musical Building Blocks	p. 43
Learning Outcomes	p. 43
The Elements of Sound	p. 44
Periodic Motion	p. 46
The Discovery of Music Within Sound	p. 47
Sensory Consonance and Dissonance	p. 48
Tuning Systems	p. 51
Sensitivity to Pitch	p. 52
Models of Pitch Perception	p. 53
Absolute Pitch	p. 57
Timbre	p. 59
Reconstructing Music	p. 65
Additional Readings	p. 66
Music Acquisition	p. 67
Learning Outcomes	p. 67
Musical Infants	p. 68
Music in the Womb	p. 70
Investigating Music Perception Among Infants	p. 71
Melodic Contour	p. 74
Consonance and Dissonance	p. 75
Pitch Relations	p. 78
Scale Structure	p. 81
Phrase Structure	p. 83
Harmony	p. 84
Key	p. 85
Rhythm	p. 87
Memory for Music	p. 88
Learning and Enculturation	p. 89
Additional Readings	p. 90
Perceiving Music Structure	p. 91
Learning Outcomes	p. 91
Arrangements of Sounds	p. 92
Relative Pitch	p. 93
Melodic Contour	p. 95
Scale Structure	p. 98
Large-Scale Structure	p. 99
Melodic Expectancies	p. 100
Implicit Memory for Music	p. 102
Implied Harmony	p. 105
Musical Key	p. 107
Implied Key	p. 111
Rhythm	p. 112
Additional Readings	p. 118
Music and Emotion	p. 119
Learning Outcomes	p. 119
Emotion Work	p. 120
Emotion and Cognition	p. 121
Theories of Music and Emotion	p. 125
Empirical Studies	p. 138
Do Listeners Agree on the Emotional Meaning of Music?	p. 138
How Do Listeners Respond Emotionally to Music?	p. 141
Compositional and Expressive Signals of Emotion	p. 144
What Properties of Music Lead to an Emotional Response?	p. 146
Is There a Universal Link Between Music and Emotion?	p. 148
Sources of Emotion in Music	p. 149
Additional Readings	p. 150
Music and the Brain	p. 151
Learning Outcomes	p. 151
What's in a Brain?	p. 152
The Search for Music Inside the Brain	p. 155
Neurological Disorders	p. 158
Techniques of Neuroimaging	p. 165
Neuroimaging and Music	p. 169
A Rapidly Evolving Field	p. 179
Additional Readings	p. 181
Performing Music	p. 183
Learning Outcomes	p. 183
Playing Music	p. 184
Acquiring Performance Skill	p. 186
Communicating Musical Structure	p. 188
Communicating Emotional Meaning	p. 193
Singing	p. 195
Improvising	p. 198
Gestures and Facial Expressions	p. 200
Evaluating Performance	p. 203
The Craft of the Performer	p. 206
Additional Readings	p. 208
Composing Music	p. 209
Learning Outcomes	p. 209
The Radius of Creativity	p. 210
Composers and Listeners	p. 213
Cognitive Constraints on Composition	p. 215
Composing with Multiple Voices	p. 219
Where Do New Ideas Come From?	p. 224
The Craft of Music Composition	p. 231
Additional Readings	p. 232
Music and Other Abilities	p. 233
Learning Outcomes	p. 233
Is Music Unique?	p. 234
Short-Term Effects of Music	p. 236
Long-Term Benefits of Music	p. 241
Educational Implications	p. 257
Additional Readings	p. 257
Glossary	p. 259
References	p. 281
Author Index	p. 301
Subject Index	p. 306
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