- 368 pages
- English
- PDF
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
What is the origin of music? In the last few decades this centuries-old puzzle has been reinvigorated by new archaeological evidence and developments in the fields of cognitive science, linguistics, and evolutionary theory. In this path-breaking book, renowned musicologist Gary Tomlinson draws from these areas to construct a new narrative for the emergence of human music.
Starting at a period of human pre_history long before Homo sapiens or music existed, Tomlinson describes the incremental attainments that, by changing the communication and society of prehuman species, laid the foundation for musical behaviors in more recent times. He traces in Neanderthals and early sapiens the accumulation and development of these capacities, and he details their coalescence into modern musical behavior across the last hundred millennia.
But A Million Years of Music is not about music alone. Tomlinson builds a model of human evolution that revises our understanding of the interaction of biology and culture across evolutionary time-scales, challenging and enriching current models of our deep history. As he tells his story, he draws in other emerging human traits: language, symbolism, a metaphysical imagination and the ritual it gives rise to, complex social structure, and the use of advanced technologies. Tomlinson's model of evolution allows him to account for much of what makes us a unique species in the world today and provides a new way of understanding the appearance of humanity in its modern form.
Frequently asked questions
- Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
- Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Information
Table of contents
- Contents
- Preface Concepts, Models, Machines
- 1 Some First Principles
- 2 1,000,000 Years Ago: Acheulean Performances
- 3 500,000 Years Ago: Lower Paleolithic Voices
- Excursus Social Intelligence, Bamboo Minds, and Connectionist Cognition
- 4 250,000 Years Ago: Neandertal Digitalization
- 5 100,000 Years Ago: Symbolic et non
- 6 100,000-20,000 Years Ago, I: Homo sapiens and the Falling Out of Modern Culture
- 7 100,000-20,000 Years Ago, II: Musicking
- 8 Afterward
- Evolution, Emergence, and History: A Final Note
- Notes
- Acknowledgements
- Index
- Plate I
- Plate II