Classic FM interviews
Classic FM came along to our 2011 'Why Music?' conference and interviewed some of the speakers and delegates. Videos can be found below.
Professor Michael Trimble (click here to read more about Michael on classicfm.co.uk)
Professor Nigel Osborne (click here to read more about Nigel on classicfm.co.uk)
Mitch Benn (click here to read more about Mitch on classicfm.co.uk)
Stephen Johnson (click here to read more about Stephen on classicfm.co.uk)
Professor Roger Scruton (click here to read more about Roger on classicfm.co.uk)
Schumann: A Mind Unhinged or a Genius Unlocked?
Click here to read an article written for 2010's Proms Guide by Stephen Johnson
“Stephen Johnson combined a superb intellect with a humility and willingness to share his experiences which was inspirational.”
One among many tributes paid to his contributions at Musical Brain events, Stephen’s scholarship, combined with his keen personal interest in The Musical Brain’s aims, has made his involvement in our conferences very special, and we look forward to welcoming him back in 2011.
He is a music journalist and broadcaster, having written regularly for The Independent, The Guardian, The Scotsman, BBC Music Magazine and Gramophone, and in 2003 was voted Amazon.com 'Classical Music Writer of the Year'. Stephen is one of BBC Radio 3’s outstanding presenters, in particular of “Discovering Music”, which is normally broadcast at 5pm on Sundays.
He is the author of Bruckner Remembered (Faber 1998) and books on Mahler and Wagner (Naxos 2006 & 2007).
Nature Online
An article in Nature online by the Science writer Philip Ball, author of The Music Instinct, how music works and why we can’t do without it:
It's not hard to understand why Robert Schumann was selected as the focus of a meeting called The Musical Brain: Arts, Science and the Mind, which took place last weekend in London. Not only is this year the two-hundredth anniversary of the German composer's birth, but his particular 'musical brain' gives neuroscientists plenty to think about.
Click here to read the full article
Hearts and minds
by Guy Dammann
"Birds whistle, man alone sings, and one cannot hear either a song or an instrumental piece without immediately saying to oneself: another sensitive being is present." The author of this sentence, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, remains best known for his political and moral philosophy that later inspired a revolution. But his thoughts on music were just as prescient of an aesthetic revolution that would lead to music being raised from the lowly place it occupied during his lifetime - that of poetry's "handmaiden" - to the position it took during the 19th century, as the highest, most noble, most humane of the fine arts.
Click here to read the full article as a pdf
Women's Hour - Radio 4
Music affects us in lots of ways - it can invoke memories, provoke emotions, and move us to activity (dancing, singing along, making music ourselves). So looking at how the brain responds when a person is listening to music tells us a lot about the role the brain plays in memory, emotion and activity, and how these things are related to each other. Music also gives neurologists a way into talking about the ‘nature/nurture’ debate by comparing the brains of talented musicians with those of ordinary people. Jenni discusses what music can tell us about the kinds of beings we are with Dr Jessica Grahn of Cambridge University and Dr Katie Overy from the University of Edinburgh.
Click here to follow the link and listen to the clip.
For all press enquiries please get in touch with Greg Harradine
musicalbrain@virginmedia.com or T 020 8404 1327
