Music
Articles, Films and practical Guides on music, part of Psyche’s coverage of creativity and the arts.
How Bobby McFerrin draws out mesmerising music from any audience
Video by World Science Festival
The beats that make us want to move
Some musical rhythms are built to get us bobbing, foot-tapping or dancing. Researchers show how rhythmic complexity matters
by Matt Huston
The barbarians are at the gates in this electric Laurie Anderson performance
Video by All Arts
Why did bloody knights write love songs about spring blossoms?
The masculinity of medieval knighthood was expansive enough for both graphic violence and the joys of a flower meadow
by Jennifer Saltzstein
Courtly love songs are a window into medieval sex lives
Song lyrics acted as a sexual script for aristocrats, revealing some edgy practices that ignited their imaginations
by Elizabeth Eva Leach
I learned to hear the music of Earth’s underwater musicians
If we consider the sounds of whales and other organisms with an open mind, we find a strange beauty – and can even join in
by David Rothenberg
Ancient Greek ideas of attunement can breathe new life into music
In Athenian philosophy, attunement is important not only in music, but also for moods, attitudes and states of mind
by John Bagby
Endearingly weird wax figures inhabit a musical journey of self-discovery
Directed by Daniel Quirke
The songs of Bob Dylan suffuse a poignant story of dementia and music
Directed by Harry Shaw
