Why do minor chords so sad? In this episode of The Psych Files I explore ideas from Daniel Leviton‘s fascinating book, This Is Your Brain on Music, especially those ideas concerned with what composers do to draw you into their piece by first conforming to your musical expectations and then carefully confounding them in order to surprise and delight. I talk with guitarist and composer David Temple to get his perspective on this process as well. Along the way you’ll hear excerpts from some fascinating pieces of music and David and I will discuss what makes them so compelling, especially those in the minor key. My My piano playing skills are pretty rough but get ready for some fun.

Resources on the Psychology of Music

• 

  This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession List Price: $16.00 Price: $7.50 Read Reviews

• The intersection of psychology and the arts, particularly music, is a growing interest to many people. If you’re interested in the connection of music and psychology, a “Master’s in Applied Psychology” could be for you. If you’ve already got a bachelor’s degree then you might be interested in the Masters in Applied Psychology at Sacred Heart University. You can earn this graduate degree from your own home. Worth looking into.
• Thanks so much to guitarist and composer David Temple. The pieces you heard in today’s episode can be purchased from David Temple‘s website:
• You can email David at davitem AT yahoo DOT com and he will give you more info about how to purchase his CDs.
• Here’s the book I used to learn to play piano:
• 

  How to Play Piano Despite Years of Lessons: What Music Is and How to Make It at Home List Price: $22.99 Price: $14.62 Read Reviews

,

• Excellent article that appeared in Cognitive Daily called, "Even isolated cultures understand emotions conveyed by Western music".
• Great article that appeared in the July 2009 edition of Scientific American Mind entitled "Why Music Moves Us".
• Another interesting article on how music affects us from Scientific American Mind called "Music in Your Head"
• Here’s a more academically-oriented book on the topic of music and expectations:
• 
• The Cognitive Neuroscience of Music – an excellent book, summarized here on the Paintest Blog.