Music and the Mind
by Anthony Storr
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Book Summary Information
Author: Anthony StorrEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-10-19
ISBN: 0345383184
Number of pages: 224
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Book Reviews of Music and the Mind
Book Review: The Muse of Music
Summary: 4 Stars
The author is an acclaimed psychiatrist whose personal life was very sad and lonely; he attributed his passion for music as the element which preserved his sanity and emotional equilibrium. Out of the many books he wrote, this was his favorite. He attempts to discover what it is about music that so profoundly affects us, and why it is such an important part of our culture. In doing so, he quotes a vast array of opinions; actually he draws more from what other peole have had to say about music than his own personal opinion.Storr sees music as subjective, emotional need for communication with other human beings; it structures time and brings order out of chaos, and it has a positive effect upon patients with neurological diseases. Physiologically, the emotional response is centered in the right hemisphere whilst the ability to appreciate structure and make critical judgments is located on the left side of the brain. He is of the opinion that music originates from the human brain rather than from the natural world and its universality depends on the urge to impose order upon our experience. He criticizes the dispute between formalists and expressionists since for him it is obvious that appreciation of both form and emotional significance enter into the experience of every listener and cannot be separated. Contrary to Freud's opinion, Storr holds that music is not an escape from reality but a means to structure our auditory perceptions and can also serve as a precursor to creative discovery.
The last few chapters are dedicated to a philosophical analysis of the views held mainly by Schopenhauer, Jung, Nietszche with respect to music. Storr does not fully accept Schopenhauer's "unus mundus" or Jung's "pleroma," and is more inclined to accept Nietszche's concepts: music reconciles an individual to life and enhances it, it is physically and emotionally based, and it links the two principles of Apollo and Dionysus.
Storr gives a historical, psychological, philosophical, and above all a passionate account of importance of music in the life of an individual. Quoting his own words, music is "something for the sake of which it is worthwhile to live on earth... it is an irreplaceable, transcendental blessing."
Summary of Music and the Mind
"Writing with grace and clarity...he touches on everything from the evolution of the Western tonal system, to the Freudian theory of music as infantile escapism, to the differing roles o the right and left brain in perceiving music."WALL STREET JOURNAL
Drawing on his own life long passion for music and synthesizing the theories of Plato, Schopenhauer, Stravinsky, Nietzsche, Bartok, and others, distinguished author and psychologist Anthony Storr illuminates music's deep beauty and timeless truth and why and how music is one of the fundamental activities of mankind.
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