Tuesday, September 16, 2008 @ 4-6pm
Walter Hall
80 Queen’s Park
(Edward Johnson Building, basement)
Free

Presented in partnership with the University of Toronto Faculty of Music.
A lecture with performances
by voice pedagogy majors at the University of
Toronto.

From the author of This is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession, Daniel Levitin’s new book showcases his daring theory of “six songs,” illuminating how the brain evolved to play and listen to music in six fundamental forms— for knowledge, friendship, ceremony, joy, comfort, and love. Levitin shows how music and dance enabled the social bonding and friendship necessary for human culture and society to evolve. Blending cutting-edge scientific findings with his own sometimes hilarious experiences as a musician and music-industry professional, Levitin’s sweeping study also incorporates wisdom gleaned from interviews with icons ranging from Sting and Paul Simon to Joni Mitchell, Willie Nelson, and David Byrne. The result is a brilliant revelation of the prehistoric yet elegant systems at play when we sing and dance at a wedding or cheer at a concert—or tune out quietly with an iPod.

Daniel J. Levitin runs the Levitin Laboratory for Musical Perception, Cognition, and Expertise at McGill University, where he holds the Bell Chair in the Psychology of Electronic Communications. Before becoming a neuroscientist, he was a record producer with gold records to his credit and professional musician. He has published extensively in scientific journals and music trade magazines such as Grammy and Billboard.

Special thanks to the Faculty of Music and Penguin Group Canada.