LASS 862 - Psychology of Music

3 credits

What makes a phenomenon musical? What is musical behavior? Why do people devote valuable cognitive resources to it? Does music have properties with universal (cross-cultural) significance? Can music be said to convey meaning? These and similar questions represent an effort to understand aspects of music seldom if ever addressed through studies of its history, theory, and practice. Moving from causal explanation to cognitive representation and mediated behavior, the course examines the biological origins of music-making, the psychology of aural awareness and perception, the strategies of musical expression, and the construction of meaning in relation to culture.

Prerequisites LACR*102 or LACR*103

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