How does music work? Indeed, what is (or isn't) music? We are all
instinctively musical, but why? Adam Ockelford has the answers.
A tap of the foot, a rush of emotion, the urge to hum a tune; without
instruction or training we all respond intuitively to music. Comparing
Notes explores what music is, why all of us are musical, and how
abstract patterns of sound that might not appear to mean anything can,
in fact, be so meaningful.
Taking the reader on a clear and compelling tour of major twentieth
century musical theories, Professor Adam Ockelford arrives at his own
important psychologically grounded theory of how music works. From pitch
and rhythm to dynamics and timbre, he shows how all the elements of
music cohere through the principle of imitation to create an abstract
narrative in sound that we instinctively grasp, whether listening to
Bach or the Beatles.
Authoritative, engaging, and full of wonderful examples from across the
musical spectrum, Comparing Notes is essential reading for anyone
who's ever loved a song, sonata, or symphony, and wondered why.