[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Book Announcement



*Selected Theories of Music Perception* by Harold E. Fiske
(1996) ISBN 0-7734-9771-4   176pp.

This is an historical and philosophical analysis of eight major theories
that concern music perception, cognition, and meaning. These theories,
developed in the 20th century, are among those most often cited by the
music psychology and philosophy research literature. Included are Carl
Seashore's theory of musical inheritance, Information theory, Mary Louise
Serafine's theory of music as thought, music cognition versus speech
cognition, neural network theory and Connectionist theory, and the musical
meaning and communication theories of Suzanne Langer, Leonard Meyer, and
Peter Kivy. The links between these theories and other experimental and
philosophical research are considered as well. The final chapter offers a
list of 21 principles of music cognition and aesthetic communication
derived from the analysis of each theory. The analyses reflect the recent
historical development of music psychology and philosophy research, and
serve as a useful guide for future investigations.

"This publication is an outstanding contribution to the field of music
cognition and should be of great interest to philosophers, psychologists,
aestheticians, musicians, and those music specialists interested in music
psychology and music education . . . written in a style that makes the
reading easy, even when the the going gets tough . . . . I highly
recommend this book to those interested in music cognition and to those
who simply are looking for some explanations of theories about how human
brains deal with music." -- from a review by Jack J. Heller, School of
Music, University of South Florida

"Although frequently theoretically dense and always scholarly and
rigorous, it is written in a style that at times is almost
conversational, revealing a sense of humour and a fascination with the
process of thinking itself . . . . it would be an excellent companion to
a course in psychology of music or in cognition and perception,
especially at the graduate level." -- from a review by Lee R. Bartel,
Director of the Canadian Music Education Research Centre, University of
Toronto.

Published by and available from The Edwin Mellen Press, Order Fulfillment
Dept., P.O. Box 450, Lewiston, NY 14092-0450. Price: $79.95US

Or: The Edwin Mellen Press, Mellen House, 16 College St., Lampeter,
Dyfed, Wales SA48 7DY, UK. Price: 39.95Pounds Sterling.

e-mail: mellen@ag.net