Musicophilia

About a year ago I read 'Musicophilia' by Oliver Sacks and I thought I would add and expand upon my original online review for you here.

`Musicophilia' is another readable book from Oliver Sacks that explores the brain in relation to music.  Oliver Sacks is an eminent Neuroscientist who has written numerous books about the brain and how illnesses and injuries can alter the way we experience the world around us.  In this book he explores this theme in relation to music.

A lot of this book looks at neurological issues where the brain stops working as it should and highlights specific idiosyncrasies of music in the brain, things like musical hallucinations after a stroke etc. But it also looks at synaesthesia and perfect pitch and other ways music is experienced or affects the brain that do not stem from injury or illness.

This has lots of case studies and first person accounts to help clarify points raised and this also adds a human elements to what could otherwise be a very clinical look at music from a neurological point of view. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Williams syndrome and found the case studies recounted both fascinating and endearing.  Williams syndrome is a physical condition that affects about 1 in 20,000 live births and whilst there are some physical attributes, this book focused on the love of music and perfect pitch that also typically accompanies this syndrome.

One minor niggle for me is that this book is very classical music orientated, which isn't a bad thing necessarily, but there are other forms of music that aren`t covered in any great depth.  My own tastes in music are so varied it would have been nice to read more about these other genres too.

If you are heavily into music then this book should have plenty to fascinate you, but if you have only a passing interest then there is still enough information in the scientific aspects of the book to keep you engrossed. This is a nice blend of the personal and the scientific and makes for a few days informative reading.