"I loved reading that listening to music coordinates more disparate parts of the brain than almost anything else - and playing music uses even more! Despite illuminating a lot of what goes on, this book doesn't 'spoil' enjoyment--it only deepens the beautiful mystery that is music."--David Byrne, founder of Talking Heads and author of How Music Works

"Levitin is a deft and patient explainer of the basics for the non-scientist as well as the non-musician....By tracing music's deep ties to memory, Levitin helps quantify some of music's magic without breaking its spell."--Los Angeles Times Book Review

"Why human beings make and enjoy music is, in Levitin's telling, a delicious story."--Salon.com

"Dr. Levitin is an unusually deft interpreter full of striking scientific trivia."--The New York Times

"Every musician, at whatever level of skill, should read this book."--Howie Klein, former president, Sire and Reprise/Warner Brothers Records

"Levitin's lucid explanation of why music is important to us is essential reading for creative musicians and scholars. I've been waiting for years for a book like this."--Jon Appleton, composer and professor of Music, Dartmouth College and Stanford University, inventor of the Synclavier synthesizer