Start reading This is Your Brain on Music: Understanding a Human Obsession on your Kindle in under a minute. Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.

Try it free

Read books on your computer or other mobile devices with our FREE Kindle Reading Apps.

Share your own customer images

This is Your Brain on Music: Understanding a Human Obsession [Kindle Edition]

Daniel J. Levitin (Author)

3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews) |

Digital List Price:	�6.43 What's this?
Print List Price:	�9.99
Kindle Price:	�5.14 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via *Amazon Whispernet*
You Save:	�4.85 (49%)
Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.

Length: 340 pages
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.

	Amazon Price		New from	Used from
Kindle Edition	�5.14		--	--
Library Binding	�15.13		--	--
Show # more hardcovers
Show fewer hardcovers
Paperback	�7.19		--	--
Show # more paperbacks
Show fewer paperbacks
Audio, CD, Abridged, Audiobook	�20.05		--	--
Audio Download, Abridged	�10.04	or Free with Audible.co.uk 30-day free trial

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

How Music Works: A listener's guide to harmony... by John Powell
4.7 out of 5 stars (16)

�9.99
The Music Instinct by Ball Philip
3.3 out of 5 stars (18)

�4.93
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks
4.0 out of 5 stars (21)

�6.44
The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century by Alex Ross
4.4 out of 5 stars (49)

�4.99
Music, Language, and the Brain by Aniruddh D. Patel
4.0 out of 5 stars (2)

�15.16
The Music Instinct Brain Shot (Abridged) by Philip Ball
1.0 out of 5 stars (1)

�3.14

Product Description

David Byrne, Talking Heads

`A dissection of music that inexorably builds to a grand finish... it only deepens the beautiful mystery that is music.'

Review

"'A dissection of music perception and creation that inexorably builds to a grand finish. Despite illuminating a lot of what goes on with music this book doesn't "spoil" enjoyment - it only deepens the beautiful mystery that is music.' David Byrne, Talking Heads 'Endlessly stimulating' Oliver Sacks"

See all Product Description

Product details

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 962 KB
Print Length: 340 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0452288525
Publisher: Atlantic Books (1 July 2011)
Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.� r.l.
Language English
ASIN: B00556G7R4
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #30,186 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #39 in Kindle Store > Books > Nonfiction > Science > Behavioural Sciences

Would you like to give feedback on images?

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

› Visit Amazon's Daniel J. Levitin Page

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?

How Music Works: A listener's guide to harmony, keys, broken chords, perfect pitch and the secrets of a good tune by John Powell Kindle Edition
4.7 out of 5 stars (16)

�9.99

How to Listen to Music, 7th ed. Hints and Suggestions to Untaught Lovers of the Art by Henry Edward Krehbiel Kindle Edition

�0.00

The Music Instinct by Ball Philip Kindle Edition
3.3 out of 5 stars (18)

�4.93

A Popular History of the Art of Music From the Earliest Times Until the Present by W. S. B. (William Smythe Babcock) Mathews Kindle Edition

�0.00

› Explore similar items

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

(What's this?)

Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)

are we nearly there yet(1)

philosophy(2)

religion(2)

geometry(1)

mathematical fiction(1)

morals(1)

parallel worlds(1)

Customer Reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars

Write a customer review

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 51 people found the following review helpful

Dumbing Down 5 Nov 2009

By Enthusiast

Format:Paperback

This is the sort of book that looks as though it ought to be of interest to musicians because it is written by a psychologist, and of interest to psychologists because it is written by someone knowledgeable about music. It appears that Levitin has had the great benefit of working for a long time in both the music industry and in academic psychology, and one would expect him to have valuable insights into both music and psychology.

So it is all the more disappointing to find his book so lacking in depth or, for that matter, ideas. The basic - very basic - information on musical terms is fine, but do not expect either scholarship or brilliance from this book. Levitin's efforts to relieve the prevailing dulness with ill-advised attempts at humour are merely embarrassing, but his relentless name-dropping and pointless anecdotes very soon become irritating.

Do not buy this book. If you want to know about music and the brain, get Huron's book 'Sweet Anticipation' or Ani Patel's book on Music and Language. Then you will be learning from people who really know what they are on about.

1 Comment |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

Cut it in half and it might be ok 16 Mar 2010

By R. Mouatt

Format:Paperback

When I first saw this book I was excited by the prospect, I am interested in musicology and thought this crossed with the private life of the brain would be an excellent read. How wrong I was.

Really the title should read "This is my brain on music" as this seems to largely be an auto-biography of Levitin's life to date with a few interesting facts he has picked up along the way added. The musical tastes of Levitin are also apparent in the reading, when he briefly mentions Schoenberg he writes like a gun has been held to his head as he was told he had to at least acknowledge that twelve-tone exists. Then back to the Beatles which at times almost feels like he is saying that they are the only band that has ever written a song to excite the brain.

When he does write the occasional interesting fact he then proceeds to beat it to death with several attempts at an explanation, an analogy or two and another anecdote. Once you think you are past the worst of it a couple of pages later he seems to start trying to explain it all over again. For me this led to several bouts of rage telling the book "YES I GET IT!"

To me this book felt like the publisher had accidentally published the first draft rather than the edited final copy. There are one or two interesting facts in the book but they are smothered by dumbed down explanations, anecdotes and Levitin's personal tastes leaving you with very little science or musicology but a rather foul taste in the mouth.

Comment |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

Sometimes a struggle..... 11 Feb 2010

By Mr. N. EVANS

Format:Paperback

I'm obsessed with music - it's my entire life. I'm a musician/songwriter, and I was immediately intrigued on reading the cover, that I may never "hear music in the same way again" after reading this book.

This book is sometimes very interesting, and it is worth the read for the occasional gem, but it was a struggle and half way through I found myself gazing at all the other books on my bookshelf waiting to be read, wishing I could muster the energy to stumble through yet another paragraph of scientific babble about the "hippocampus" or the "nucleus accumbens"!!

I understand that this is about how the brain works to percieve music, but most of the time I was struggling to understand what Daniel Levitin was talking about.

If you are a musician with a good knowledge of science, this might be the one for you, but for someone with very little knowledge of the latter - steer clear!!

Comment |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

› See all 21 customer reviews on Amazon.co.uk

Write a customer review

Would you like to see more reviews about this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 174 reviews

Were these reviews helpful? Let us know

Most Recent Customer Reviews

Covers a lot of ground in an interesting, readable manner

I enjoyed this. I learnt quite a lot, even though my music theory is reasonably good already. The physics of sound and audio was relatively new to me and presented in an easy... Read more

Published 16 months ago by S Gleadall

Excellent introduction to two subjects

The book covers a wide range of topics from both fields. I think it can proove an excellent introduction to music theory, as to really understand our natural music theory. Read more

Published on 11 May 2010 by Andrew Reeman

10/10

The book itself is truly amazing, psychologically speaking.
Additionally it was in good condition and I could hardly tell it was used. Read more

Published on 29 Mar 2010 by Adriana Mihailescu

Food for thought

This is your brain on music

The science of a human obsession

By Daniel Levitin

A Review by the Cotes d' Azur Men's Book Group... Read more

Published on 25 Mar 2010 by Ivor R. B. Hibbitt

Your brain on music

I bought this as a present for my daughter - she states it is a great book for both non-music and music minded people.

Published on 1 Feb 2010 by S. Vernel

THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC (book)

I enjoyed this book thoroughly and it is now running the gambit amongst my music-loving friends. Where would the world be without music. Read more

Published on 28 Dec 2009 by Eejram

The Brain and Music

I was writing a Masters dissertation (in Management) on the connection between musical tastes and the values held by leaders in organisations. Read more

Published on 3 Dec 2009 by Mrs. Louise J. Hardy

Finally...

I've been waiting forever for someone to write this book. It's a relief that Daniel Levitin has done it so well. Read more

Published on 7 Nov 2009 by Julie Lawrence

Difficult to place... is this academia or anecdotal memoirs?

Difficult to place... is this academia or anecdotal memoirs?

First of all I think it needs to be said, that this is not a bad text per se. Read more

Published on 21 Oct 2009 by Andrew W

Fascinating knowledge

For me, a jazz musician, the book opened my eyes. Now I understand what happens in a brain when playing and listening to music. The book is worth reading.

Published on 28 Aug 2009 by Bertil Ekman

Popular Highlights

(What's this?)

What artists and scientists have in common is the ability to live in an open-ended state of interpretation and reinterpretation of the products of our work. &quote;

Highlighted by 11 Kindle users

The basic elements of any sound are loudness, pitch, contour, duration (or rhythm), tempo, timbre, spatial location, and reverberation. &quote;

Highlighted by 10 Kindle users

But if I put electrodes in your auditory cortex and play a pure tone in your ears at 440 Hz, there are neurons in your auditory cortex that will fire at precisely that frequency, causing the electrode to emit electrical activity at 440 Hzfor pitch, what goes into the ear comes out of the brain! &quote;

Highlighted by 8 Kindle users

.jsOffDisplayBlock { display: block; } .jsOffDisplayInline { display: inline; } .jsOffVisibility { visibility: visible; } .jsOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jsOnDisplayNoneBlock { display: block; } .jsOnDisplayNoneInline { display: inline; } .jsOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jsOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; } .jqOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jqOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jqOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; } .jqOnDisplayNoneBlock { display: block; } .jqOnDisplayNoneInline { display: inline; }