10 Music Books from 2024 Worth Checking
As in some previous years, the beginning of a new year is a good time to look back and see what the previous year has brought. In this case I wanted to know which non-fiction books about the topic of music may be worth checking and reading.
I had a chance to consider about four dozens of relevant books published in 2024. I am sure there have been more books published on this topic, but these are titles that I have encountered. From those I have chosen ten books that caught my interest and thought it would be good to mention them here in my blog. Obviously, my selection reflects my interests and priorities, but I still believe, that these are titles that are bringing new approaches and new ideas, that can broaden our understanding of music.
From a general perspective, there are few trends and areas, that either keep appearing, or that attract interest of authors and publishers more often than others. One such area is the modern technology and media, and how they impact the production, consumption, and appreciation of music — whether it is YouTube, TikTok, streaming, or AI. Other area is the impact of music on the human health and wellbeing. There is also a recurring topic of the music evolution and an effort to scientifically clarify the very reason music exists. There are many other areas where music is being looked at from the perspective of mathematics, physics, sociology, business, or education.
There is one more thing that I want to mention here, that made me very cautious about which books to include in my list. It is the ESG, or environmental, social, and governance framework, that has seeped into many of these writings. In my opinion this wokeism has skewed research processes and outcomes in the way that is not beneficial for music itself, its creators and listeners.
1. I Heard There Was A Secret Chord: Music as Medicine, by Daniel Levitin
2. Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, by Renée Fleming
3. Platformed! How Streaming, Algorithms and Artificial Intelligence are Shaping Music Cultures, by Tiziano Bonini, Paolo Magaudda
4. Theorizing Music Evolution: Darwin, Spencer, and the Limits of the Human, by Miriam Piilonen
5. Learn Faster Perform Better: A Musician’s Guide to the Neuroscience of Practicing, by Molly Gebrian
6. Musicking TikTok: A Musical Ethnography from a Glocal Austrian Context (New Approaches to Sound, Music, and Media), by Juan Bermúdez
7. Megaliths, Music, and the Mind: A Transdisciplinary Exploration of Archaeoacoustics, by Linda Eneix
8. Streaming Music, Streaming Capital, by Eric Drott
9. Futuromania: Electronic Dreams, Desiring Machines, and Tomorrow’s Music Today, by Simon Reynolds
10. And the Roots of Rhythm Remain: A Journey Through Global Music, by Joe Boyd
