The Psychology of Musical Ability

Originally published in 1981, The Psychology of Musical Ability is a considerably revised and updated edition of a well-known work which deals broadly and comprehensively with all aspects of psychological studies of musical ability. This second edition pays particular attention to the new tests of musical ability that had been devised, and to the recent developments in studies of the child at the time.

The opening chapters discuss the concept of musical ability and evaluate carefully the means of testing it that were now available; the nature of musical ability and its relationship to other abilities and to personality factors are also examined. In Part 2 the development of musical abilities from infancy to adulthood is traced in detail; whilst Part 3 considers the relative importance of heredity and of the home, school and social environments. The concluding section deals with the relationship between music, cognition and the brain; it includes studies of meaning and music as well as of perception and memory in music, and bilaterality studies. The authors have provided a systematic account that will be invaluable to performers, teachers and all who are interested in music.