Musicophilia : tales of music and the brain

Amazon.com Review : Legendary R&B icon Ray Charles claimed that he was "born with music inside me," and neurologist Oliver Sacks believes Ray may have been right. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain examines the extreme effects of music on the human brain and how lives can be utterly transformed by the simplest of harmonies. With clinical studies covering the tragic (individuals afflicted by an inability to connect with any melody) and triumphant (Alzheimer's patients who find order and comfort through music), Sacks provides an erudite look at the notion that humans are truly a "musical species." --Dave Callanan From Publishers Weekly Sacks is an unparalleled chronicler of modern medicine, and fans of his work will find much to enjoy when he turns his prodigious talent for observation to music and its relationship to the brain. The subtitle aptly frames the book as a series of medical case studies-some in-depth, some abruptly short. The tales themselves range from the relatively mundane (a song that gets stuck on a continuing loop in one's mind) through the uncommon (Tourette's or Parkinson's patients whose symptoms are calmed by particular kinds of music) to the outright startling (a man struck by lightning subsequently developed a newfound passion and talent for the concert piano). In this latest collection, Sacks introduces new and fascinating characters, while also touching on the role of music in some of his classic cases (the man who mistook his wife for a hat makes a brief appearance). Though at times the narrative meanders, drawing connections through juxtaposition while leaving broader theories to be inferred by the reader, the result is greater than the sum of its parts. This book leaves one a little more attuned to the remarkable complexity of human beings, and a bit more conscious of the role of music in our lives. (Oct.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. General,Science,Neuropsychology,Neurology,Psychology,Psychological aspects,Life Sciences,Creative Ability,Music - Psychological aspects,Medical,Music - Physiological aspects,Anatomy & Physiology,Appreciation,Instruction & Study,Music,Physiological aspects Music can move us to the heights or depths of emotion. It can persuade us to buy something, or remind us of our first date. It can lift us out of depression when nothing else can. It can get us dancing to its beat. But the power of music goes much, much further. Indeed, music occupies more areas of our brain than language does–humans are a musical species. Oliver Sacks’s compassionate, compelling tales of people struggling to adapt to different neurological conditions have fundamentally changed the way we think of our own brains, and of the human experience. In Musicophilia, he examines the powers of music through the individual experiences of patients, musicians, and everyday people–from a man who is struck by lightning and suddenly inspired to become a pianist at the age of forty-two, to an entire group of children with Williams syndrome who are hypermusical from birth; from people with “amusia,” to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans, to a man whose memory spans only seven seconds–for everything but music. Our exquisite sensitivity to music can sometimes go wrong: Sacks explores how catchy tunes can subject us to hours of mental replay, and how a surprising number of people acquire nonstop musical hallucinations that assault them night and day. Yet far more frequently, music goes right: Sacks describes how music can animate people with Parkinson’s disease who cannot otherwise move, give words to stroke patients who cannot otherwise speak, and calm and organize people whose memories are ravaged by Alzheimer’s or amnesia. Music is irresistible, haunting, and unforgettable, and in Musicophilia, Oliver Sacks tells us why. ([source][1]) [1]: https://www.oliversacks.com/books-by-oliver-sacks/musicophilia/ Introduction Part One: Haunted by Music 1. A Bolt from the Blue: Sudden Musicophilia 1 2. A Strangely Familiar Feeling: Musical Seizures 18 3. Fear of Music: Musicogenic Epilepsy 24 4. Music on the Brain: Imagery and Imagination 34 5. Brain Worms, Sticky Music and Catchy Tunes 48 6. Musical Hallucinations 60 Part Two: A Range of Musicality 7. Sense and Sensibility: A Range of Musicality 118 8. Things Fall Apart: Amusia and Dysharmonia 126 9. Papa Blows his Nose in G: Absolute Pitch 157 10. Pitch Imperfect: Cochlear Amusia 173 11. In Living Stereo: Why We Have Two Ears 189 12. Two Thousand Operas: Musical Savants 197 13. An Auditory World: Musicality and Blindness 208 14. The Key of Clear Green: Synesthesia and Music 215 Part Three: Memory, Movement, and Music 15. In the Moment: Music and Amnesia 244 16. Speech and Song: Music Therapy and Aphasia 282 17. Accidental Davening: Dyskinesia and Cantillation 293 18. Touch Heaven: Music and Tourette's Syndrome 295 19. Keeping Time: Rhythm and Movement 304 20. Kinetic Melody: Music Therapy and Parkinson's Disease 320 21. Phantom Fingers: The Case of the One-Armed Pianist 337 22. Athletes of the Small Muscles: Musician's Dystonia 341 Part Four: Emotion, Identity, and Music 23. Awake and Asleep: Musical Dreams 359 24. Indifference to Music 368 25. Lamentations: Music and Depression 383 26. The Case of Harry S.: Music and Emotion 390 27. Irrepressible: Music and the Temporal Lobes 395 28. A Hypermusical Species: Williams Syndrome 410 29. Music and Identity: Music Therapy and Dementia 435 Bibliography 455 Index 486 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • With the same trademark compassion and erudition he brought to The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat , Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human condition. “Powerful and compassionate. . . . A book that not only contributes to our understanding of the elusive magic of music but also illuminates the strange workings, and misfirings, of the human mind.” — The New York Times In Musicophilia , he shows us a variety of what he calls “musical misalignments.” Among them: a man struck by lightning who suddenly desires to become a pianist at the age of forty-two; an entire group of children with Williams syndrome, who are hypermusical from birth; people with “amusia,” to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans; and a man whose memory spans only seven seconds-for everything but music. Illuminating, inspiring, and utterly unforgettable. With the same trademark compassion and erudition he brought to The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human condition. In Musicophilia, he shows us a variety of what he calls “musical misalignments.” Among them: a man struck by lightning who suddenly desires to become a pianist at the age of forty-two; an entire group of children with Williams syndrome, who are hypermusical from birth; people with “amusia,” to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans; and a man whose memory spans only seven seconds-for everything but music. Illuminating, inspiring, and utterly unforgettable, Musicophilia is Oliver Sacks’ latest masterpiece. Source: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/159607/musicophilia-by-oliver-sacks/9780307267917/ "Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human condition. In Musicophilia, he shows us a variety of what he calls "musical misalignments." Among them: a man struck by lightning who suddenly desires to become a pianist at the age of forty-two; an entire group of children with Williams syndrome, who are hypermusical from birth; people with "amusia," to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans; and a man whose memory spans only seven seconds - for everything but music. Dr. Sacks describes how music can animate people with Parkinson's disease who cannot otherwise move, give words to stroke patients who cannot otherwise speak, and calm and organize people who are deeply disoriented by Alzheimer's or schizophrenia." - Back cover Revised and Expanded With the same trademark compassion and erudition he brought to The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human condition. In Musicophilia, he shows us a variety of what he calls “musical misalignments.” Among them: a man struck by lightning who suddenly desires to become a pianist at the age of forty-two; an entire group of children with Williams syndrome, who are hypermusical from birth; people with “amusia,” to whom a symphony sounds like the clattering of pots and pans; and a man whose memory spans only seven seconds-for everything but music. Illuminating, inspiring, and utterly unforgettable, Musicophilia is Oliver Sacks' latest masterpiece.