Title: Musicophila
Author: Oliver Sacks
Year: 2007
If you’re anything like me, the idea of reading a book about how music and the brain interact sounds daunting and more than a little off-putting. When I first got this book (a Christmas gift), I eyed it warily, expecting it to be full of scientific abstract concepts and medical nonsense. To my amazement, however, it turned out to be a fascinating and charmingly written read, compiling a series of glorified anecdotes Oliver Sacks has collected over the course of his forty-plus year career as a neurologist.
The strength of the book lies in its pacing. Instead of throwing example after example at his readers, Sacks lets one or two individual stories say everything he needs about a specific subject. The chapters are nice and short, making the book easy to read before bed or before classes. However, despite their brevity, the chapters always feel fully explored, with few questions left unanswered in the reader’s mind. On the rare occasions when Sacks does veer into detailed medical jargon, he makes sure he explains everything adequately. You don’t have to be a neurologist to understand what he’s talking about here.
The range of subject matter is fascinating. Connections between music and seizures, music and Parkinson’s, music and schizophrenia…it’s all here. Some of the most interesting chapters explain the biological background to phenomena like absolute pitch and synesthesia (“seeing” certain musical notes, often in the form of color. “D-sharp is yellow”, etc). As much about music as it is about brains and biology, Musicophilia definatly gives you an interesting new way to appreciate music.
The strength of the book lies in its pacing. Instead of throwing example after example at his readers, Sacks lets one or two individual stories say everything he needs about a specific subject. The chapters are nice and short, making the book easy to read before bed or before classes. However, despite their brevity, the chapters always feel fully explored, with few questions left unanswered in the reader’s mind. On the rare occasions when Sacks does veer into detailed medical jargon, he makes sure he explains everything adequately. You don’t have to be a neurologist to understand what he’s talking about here.
The range of subject matter is fascinating. Connections between music and seizures, music and Parkinson’s, music and schizophrenia…it’s all here. Some of the most interesting chapters explain the biological background to phenomena like absolute pitch and synesthesia (“seeing” certain musical notes, often in the form of color. “D-sharp is yellow”, etc). As much about music as it is about brains and biology, Musicophilia definatly gives you an interesting new way to appreciate music.
I read this great essay by a poet named James Fenton, who wrote about an experience that a young renaissance-era sculptor had with Michelangelo. The meat of the tale was that this young sculptor had brought a model that he had made to the great master, who, upon seeing it, proceeded to mash it up, and re-make it in a way that Michelangelo saw as "good art". The essay concludes with the young sculptor at home, who decides "fuck it, I'll do what I want to do", and then creates something great.
ReplyDeleteI bring this up because even though I'm sure that you believe that there are many ways of creating great art, I'm curious about what you think "good art", or rather "good music" should be, and how heavily a critique should be applied to an album. Is it a good thing to claim what kind of art is good and bad? Is it necessary?
I ask this because I think you have a good answer, and I want to hear it. I throw down the gauntlet: write a post about your philosophy on the point of reviewing music. Get into the meat of it--if certain music is "innovative", "enjoyable", or "unique", why is that good? What do we need from music? What do we need from music reviewers?
**A CHALLENGER APPROACHES** DOM DOM DOM.
p.s. I'm considering making a music review blog that reviews things only in poems, in a really nonsensical manner--sort of like a Bizarro-universe version of yours?