Musical Languages

An insightful exploration of the link between music and language.

"How is music like language, and so what if it is?" Using this double-barreled question as a starting point, Joseph P. Swain takes us to the fascinating crossroads where the philosophy and theory of music meet the worlds of linguistics, perception, cognition, meaning, and even poetry.

In Musical Languages, Swain revisits the age-old analogy between music and language in light of the latest advances in modern linguistics and cognitive psychology. The author examines the aptness of the analogy and the degree to which it can be stretched, not only demonstrating the essential similarities between music and language but also exposing where the analogy breaks down. This book picks up where Leonard Bernstein's The Unanswered Question leaves off, rendering the ubiquitous expression "musical language" fresh once again.