I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine

Neuroscientist Levitin (emeritus, Minerva Univ. and McGill Univ.; Successful Ageing: Getting the Most Out of the Rest of Your Life) is also a musician who has devoted much of his attention to the role of music—classical, folk, popular—in various therapies and how it impacts the human brain. In his latest book, he investigates the neuroanatomy of music and how it relates to memory and attention. He also offers insight into what he calls the brain’s default modes: introspection and meditation. His book takes a look—in a brilliantly creative yet solidly evidence-based light—at the part music can play in the treatment of movement disorders. He also explores other health issues that music can help: Parkinson’s disease, trauma-induced and other mental illnesses, memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer’s, strokes, and other types of pain and neurodevelopment disorders.