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Music and the Mind (Paperback, Epub Edition) Loot Price: R247
Discovery Miles 2 470
You Save: R59 (19%)

Music and the Mind (Paperback, Epub Edition)

Anthony Storr

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List price R306 Loot Price R247 Discovery Miles 2 470 You Save R59 (19%)

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From Oxford psychiatrist Storr (Churchill's Black Dog, 1989, etc.): a lucid and absorbing study of the relationship between music and the human experience. Storr's fluidly logical exploration begins with an assessment of various theories on the origins of music. After considering theories connecting music to natural phenomena like bird-song or linguistic features, Storr concludes that, although the origins of music will never be established conclusively, "it seems probable that music developed from the prosodic exchanges between mother and infant which foster the bond between them." Using terms such as "arousal," "expectation." and "fulfillment," later chapters explore physiological and psychological responses to music, bravely probing the 'issue of musical meaning as both an intellectual (objective) and emotional (subjective) stimulant. Occasionally, Storr's own musical observations are a bit simplistic: "Bach's extraordinary skill maintains our interest; but it is an interest based on elaboration, symmetry, and rhythmic pulse, rather than upon progress." But this does not detract from the author's larger vision. The bibliography reveals an incredible breadth of erudition: Storr quotes widely and with equal comfort from scientific, philosophical, and literary sources, ancient to modern. Like Oliver Sacks, he leads his reader effortlessly through a capacious synthesis of diverse material without resorting to unnecessary technical jargon. Readers with their own inchoate reflections on the nature of music will be grateful to have Storr investigating and clarifying their experiences in such elegant, taut prose. (Kirkus Reviews)

Why does music have such a powerful effect on our minds and bodies? It is the most mysterious and most intangible of all forms of art. Yet, Anthony Storr believes, music today is a deeply significant experience for a greater number of people than ever before. In this challenging book, he explores why this should be so. Drawing on a wide variety of opinions, Storr argues that the patterns of music make sense of our inner experience, giving both structure and coherence to our feelings and emotions. It is because music possesses this capacity to restore our sense of personal wholeness in a culture which requires us to separate rational thought from feelings, that many people find it so life-enhancing.

“Anyone who feels like reflecting about the origins, the impact and the significance of music will find Dr Storr’s book helpful and stimulating.”
ALFRED BRENDEL

“This beautifully written book, humane, intelligent and thoughtful, is a significant contribution to our understanding of those mysterious movements of the mind.”
ADAM LIVELY, 'Times Educational Supplement'

“It is stimulating inquiry aimed at discovering what it is about music that so profoundly moves so many people, in the course of which he describes the physical effects of mescaline, considers the relation of bird-song, the burbling of babies and the language of literature to music, and touches on many other fascinating topics, concluding that its most significant aspect for us is its power to create order out of chaos.”
FRANCES PARTRIDGE, 'Spectator'

“Reading Storr’s work is always like being taken on a journey through a foreign country by a great enthusiast. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know the language because he teaches you what you need to know along the way. His knowledge is vast and his enthusiasm infectious…Storr is an extraordinarily gifted communicator.”
MARY LOUDON, 'New Statesman & Society'

General

Imprint: HarperCollinsPublishers
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Release date: November 1993
Authors: Anthony Storr
Dimensions: 197 x 128 x 14mm (L x W x T)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 212
Edition: Epub Edition
ISBN-13: 978-0-00-686186-7
Categories: Books > Social sciences > Psychology > General
LSN: 0-00-686186-5
Barcode: 9780006861867

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