Every Brain Needs Music: The Neuroscience of Making and Listening to Music

I have a background in neuroscience and music and bought "Every Brain Needs Music" in Feb 2024, and read it carefully multiple times, making marginal notes, and going over certain portions multiple times, and researching them with other books and technical papers. I added what I considered needed additional diagrams of the hippocampus and of the brain. My previous best resource is "Adult Neurogenesis 2" by Gerd Kempermann. I now consider "Every Brain Needs Music" an authoritative, documented-by-actual practice follow-up. I value Every Brain Needs Music's guidance in my own singing at the piano, and in my knowledge of neuroscience. I recommend that the authors do "Every Brain Needs Music 2" with added diagrams and text. I have recommended "Every Brain Needs Music" to others. It offers positive reinforcement to my practicing. And I await their second edition.

The beauty about this book is that not only does it show the science behind music and the brain but it seems the more you play the healthier you get while improving at your instrument!

A fascinating look at the brain and music. It looks at all aspects of music. Listening, composing, singing. It literally changes the way the brain works. It activates certain parts of the brain. The science behind it is so intriguing and being a music nerd myself, I loved learning about all of the different ways music improves, not only our lives, but the make up of our brain!

Very informative. Excellent illustrations showing the activity in the brain. Good development of brain and music activities: improvisation, composition, practicing, performance, and listening. Not only do you learn about the brain in response to music but the book inspires you to involve your brain in the realm of music. The book also shows the effect of culture on the listening pleasure of music. Keep your brain stimulated and active by the involvement of music.

In “Every Brain Needs Music,” a musician and a neuroscientist join forces to explain the power and complexity of music in our lives. After setting the stage with why humans engage in music, the authors break the book into four “movements” to explore the dimensions of composing, practicing, performing, and listening to music. Each section weaves together research insights, informal interviews, and the authors’ own wisdom to build a thought-provoking picture of what music is and does in the world.As an engineer who is also a musician, I found much to connect with and reflect on as I compared my own experiences with those in this book. Each chapter gave me a new appreciation for the human body and its incredible capacity to learn, process information, and coordinate precise movements. I also found that the informal survey responses from other musicians brought a delightful touch to the writing and highlighted how unique our experiences are, like a kaleidoscope. The most surprising aspect of the book was how much research is still needed in the field of music, because many of the research studies showed inconclusive or narrow results. Other studies were more decisive but generic in topic (such as about learning or enjoyment in general), leaving me informed but wishing for a more direct connection to music. Still, scientists have determinedly moved our knowledge of music forward in many new and interesting ways over the years.The journey to understanding our connection to music may be unfinished, but the authors of “Every Brain Needs Music” have done an admirable job illuminating the path up to this point.

Music is good for everyone, and this book explains why! So interesting and informative, and the illustrations are lovely.

This book gives a layperson a good understanding of how the brain processes music with beautiful illustrations and several touches of humor.

Weaving their expertise in music and neuroscience, Larry Sherman and Dennis Plies share insights, encouragement, and motivation to make music a foundational part of life, both in the making and the enjoying of song, dance, and playing an instrument with EVERY BRAIN NEEDS MUSIC. I enjoyed their voices, prose, and points, but felt places where the energy dragged a little, bringing down the whole. However, the book advances the importance of art in our everyday lives and argues music is essential for a whole-bodied joy. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are re my own, unbiased thoughts.