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Music as Medicine
by Daniel J. Levitin
Neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author of This Is Your Brain on Music Daniel J. Levitin reveals the deep connections between music and healing.
Music is one of humanity's oldest medicines. From the Far East to the Ottoman Empire, Europe to Africa and the pre-colonial Americas, many cultures have developed their own rich traditions for using sound and rhythm to ease suffering, promote healing, and calm the mind.
In his latest work, neuroscientist and New York Times best-selling author Daniel J. Levitin (This Is Your Brain on Music) explores the curative powers of music, showing us how and why it is one of the most potent therapies today. He brings together, for the first time, the results of numerous studies on music and the brain, demonstrating how music can contribute to the treatment of a host of ailments, from neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, to cognitive injury, depression, and pain.
Levitin is not your typical scientist―he is also an award-winning musician and composer, and through lively interviews with some of today's most celebrated musicians, from Sting to Kent Nagano and Mari Kodama, he shares their observations as to why music might be an effective therapy, in addition to plumbing scientific case studies, music theory, and music history. The result is a work of dazzling ideas, cutting-edge research, and jubilant celebration. I Heard There Was a Secret Chord highlights the critical role music has played in human biology, illuminating the neuroscience of music and its profound benefits for those both young and old.
"Informative and enjoyable, this book is for anyone interested in how the practice of medicine is expanding, and it's a must-read for fans of the author's previous books on music and the brain. Levitin's story is a fascinating piece of work, written with authority, empathy, and occasional humor." ―Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Brilliantly creative yet solidly evidence-based.... This fascinating and valuable title gives readers insight into the many neurological benefits of music. Most readers can easily identify what kind of music calms them, provokes creative sparks, or helps get them through strenuous exercises but until they read this, they may not know why music has that power or that it can be great medicine too." ―Library Journal (starred review)
"Exuberant... Enriching lucidly explained neuroscience with ebullient musical appreciation (a Billy Pierce saxophone solo is 'in turns thrilling, heartbreaking, bustling, radiant, and always, always moving forward'), Levitin makes a persuasive case for music's therapeutic potential that gives due to its medical promise without undercutting its mysteries. The result is a fascinating take on the tuneful raptures of the mind." ―Publishers Weekly
"Part memoir and part medical primer, I Heard There Was a Secret Chord showcases Daniel J. Levitin's expertise in all genres of music as well as experimental neuroscience. No one else in the universe could have written this book." ―Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist
"Daniel J. Levitin is a visionary neuroscientist, an extraordinary musician, a brilliant writer―and this is his best book yet. I Heard There Was a Secret Chord is inspiring and illuminating, as deep as it is delightful. I couldn't put it down. So full of great ideas and delicious stories, it made me want to rewind my entire life and spend more of it making music." ―Daniel Gilbert, New York Times best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness
"For many of us, This is Your Brain on Music was an illuminating introduction to the neuroscience of music. Dan Levitin follows up with the comprehensive I Heard There Was a Secret Chord, expertly highlighting the latest trends and discoveries in arts and health, written in his always erudite yet concise and accessible style. We are so fortunate to have his keen mind leading this growing field and unlocking its mysteries for readers." ―Renée Fleming, world-renowned soprano and arts and health advocate
"Working as a cross-culture detective, Daniel J. Levitin opens the mysteries of how music heals us and fires our emotions, inspirations, and desires. Levitin cracks the case wide open while synthesizing his research and experience in a book that is an important addition to our understanding of the human experience." ―Michael Connelly, New York Times bestselling author of the Harry Bosch and Lincoln Lawyer series
This information about I Heard There Was a Secret Chord was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Daniel J. Levitin is a neuroscientist, musician, and the author of four New York Times bestselling books, including This Is Your Brain on Music. He is dean emeritus at Minerva University, professor emeritus at McGill University, and visiting professor at UCLA. A saxophonist, guitarist, bass player, and vocalist, he has worked as a producer and recording consultant. He lives in California.
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