The award-winning creator of the acclaimed documentary "The Music
Instinct: Science & Song," explores the power of music and its
connection to the body, the brain, and the world of nature. Only
recently has science sought in earnest to understand and explain this
impact. One remarkable recent study, analyzing the cries of newborns,
shows that infants' cries contain common musical intervals, and children
tease each other in specific, singsong ways no matter where in the
world they live. Physics experiments show that sound waves can
physically change the structure of a material; musician and world-famous
conductor Daniel Barenboim believes musical sound vibrations physically
penetrate our bodies, shifting molecules as they do. The Power of Music
follows visionary researchers and accomplished musicians to the
crossroads of science and culture, to discover: how much of our
musicality is learned and how much is innate? Can examining the
biological foundations of music help scientists unravel the intricate
web of human cognition and brain function? Why is music virtually
universal across cultures and time-does it provide some evolutionary
advantage? Can music make people healthier? Might music contain organizing principles of harmonic vibration that underlie the cosmos
itself?
