Today I had the opportunity to have lunch with Dr. Daniel J. Levitin, author of This is Your Brain on Music. He is on a book tour across the country and stopped in Memphis, and I was invited by Dr. Sharp, the Dean of the Fine Arts at Rhodes, to come to a lunch with him.
Before the lunch I had the opportunity to read some of Dr. Levitin's book, and it is a fascinating read. He discusses various neurological discoveries related to music and perception by the brain. Which cortex is influenced by different pitches, rhythms, and alterations? How can people with no professional training still be expert listeners in music? Levitin discusses these and various other questions.
In a chapter dedicated to "expertise" in the musical field, Levitin discusses what makes people experts in their musical field. Is it the countless hours of practice? He confirms that this is necessary. Is it training? Yes says that this is true as well. But, Levitin admits, many people have these parts of the puzzle solved. How is it then, that certain people have that "star quality" that others do not? His answer is in the expressiveness of their performance, where they emphasize certain notes, make phrases, work with silence. It is these elements, not included in the score, that separate the great players from the rest.
What I feel Levitin left me, however, is a renewed hope of the arts, generally speaking, being considered a valid field of study in other departments. Before becoming a leading scholar in music and the brain, Levitin was in a rock band, a common guy. Today at lunch I was able to participate in a discussion with professors of art history, theatre, philosophy, music, and neuroscience. I was able to learn from people in disciplines I normally would have nothing to do with in a discussion of the arts. When we can make the arts part of the study of other fields of research and education, we can validate its worth in an academic way. Daniel Levitin does this in This is Your Brain on Music.
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