Wired for Music

In a captivating blend of science and memoir, a health journalist and former cellist explores music as a source of resilience, health, and joy. Music isn't just background noise or a series of torturous exercises we remember from piano lessons. It can double as an antidepressant, painkiller, sleeping pill, memory aid--and enhance creativity and athletic performance while supporting healthy aging. Though music has been used as a healing strategy since ancient times, neuroscientists have only recently discovered that musical activities activate almost every brain region ever studied. But here's the catch: We can tune into music every day and still miss out its most potent effects. Adriana Barton learned the hard way. Starting at age five, she studied the cello for nearly two decades, a pursuit that left her with physical injuries and emotional scars. In Wired for Music, she sets out to discover what music is really for, combing through discoveries by pioneering neuroscientists, medical studies, and research from biology and anthropology. Traveling from state-of-the-art neuroscience labs to a remote village in Zimbabwe, Wired for Music gets to the heart of music's profound effects on our bodies and brain. Blending science and story, Wired for Musicshows how our species' age-old connection to melody and rhythm is wired inside us. Anyone, at any age or musical talent level, can tap into music to invigorate the body and tune the brain.