Eckart Altenmüller – författare

The motor actions that can be witnessed as a virtuoso musician performs can be so fast, so accomplished, so precise, as to seem somehow superhuman. The musician has to produce the movements, monitor those they have already made and the subsequent result, co-ordinate their hands, fingers, eyes, and perhaps throat and diaphragm. These achievements are of course the product of hundreds, even thousands of hours of practice-playing scales, studies, time and time again. But those hours of practice by no means guarantee that great musicianship will result. This technical prowess has to be combined with a range of other, perhaps, less tangible qualities. This book explores the secrets of musical virtuosity. It presents a comprehensive account of music and motor cognition, examining the neural basis of music making - our understanding of which is just starting to be enhanced by brain imaging. It considers the effect on our brains of prolonged music making. It explores the motor processes across a range of instruments (vocal, string, wind, percussion) and within different performance situations. It also considers what happens when things start to go wrong - why motor problems occur in so many professional musicians in later life, and the possible therapies for such problems. Music is a topic of considerable interest within the brain sciences. With contributions from leading psychologists, neuroscientists, and neurologists, this book makes a unique contribution to our understanding of music and the brain.

The motor actions that can be witnessed as a virtuoso musician performs can be so fast, so accomplished, so precise, as to seem somehow superhuman. The musician has to produce the movements, monitor those they have already made and the subsequent result, co-ordinate their hands, fingers, eyes, and perhaps throat and diaphragm. These achievements are of course the product of hundreds, even thousands of hours of practice - playing scales, studies, time and time again. But those hours of practice by no means guarantee that great musicianship will result. This technical prowess has to be combined with a range of other, perhaps, less tangible qualities.This book explores the secrets of musical virtuosity. It presents a comprehensive account of music and motor cognition, examining the neural basis of music making - our understanding of which is just starting to be enhanced by brain imaging. It considers the effect on our brains of prolonged music making. It explores the motor processes across a range of instruments (vocal, string, wind, percussion) and within different performance situations. It also considers what happens when things start to go wrong - why motor problems occur in so many professional musicians in later life, and the possible therapies for such problems.Music is a topic of considerable interest within the brain sciences. With contributions from leading psychologists, neuroscientists, and neurologists, this book makes a unique contribution to our understanding of music and the brain.

Why do we think that we can understand animal voices - such as the aggressive barking of a pet dog, and the longing meows of the family cat? Why do we think of deep voices as dominant and high voices as submissive. Are there universal principles governing our own communication system? Can we even see how close animals are related to us by constructing an evolutionary tree based on similarities and dissimilarities in acoustic signaling?Research on the role of emotions in acoustic communication and its evolution has often been neglected, despite its obvious role in our daily life. When we infect others with our laugh, soothe a crying baby with a lullaby, or get goose bumps listening to classical music, we are barely aware of the complex processes upon which this behavior is based. It is not facial expressions or body language that are affecting us, but sound. They are present in music and speech as "emotional prosody" and allow us to communicate not only verbally but also emotionally. This groundbreaking book presents a thorough exploration into how acoustically conveyed emotions are generated and processed in both animals and man. It is the first volume to bridge the gap between research in the acoustic communication of emotions in humans with those in animals, using a comparative approach. With the communication of emotions being an important research topic for a range of scientific fields, this book is valuable for those in the fields of animal behaviour, anthropology, evolutionary biology, human psychology, linguistics, musicology, and neurology.

Music, Neurology, and Neuroscience: Historical Connections and Perspectives provides a broad and comprehensive discussion of history and new discoveries regarding music and the brain, presenting a multidisciplinary overview on music processing, its effects on brain plasticity, and the healing power of music in neurological and psychiatric disorders.

In this context, the disorders that plagued famous musicians and how they affected both performance and composition are critically discussed, as is music as medicine and its potential health hazard.

Additional topics, including the way music fits into early conceptions of localization of function in the brain, its cultural roots in evolution, and its important roles in societies and educational systems are also explored.

Examines music and the brain both historically and in the light of the latest research findings The largest and most comprehensive volume on "music and neurology" ever written Written by a unique group of real world experts representing a variety of fields, ranging from history of science and medicine, to neurology and musicology Includes a discussion of the way music has cultural roots in evolution and its important role in societies

Did you ever ask whether music makes people smart, why a Parkinson patient's gait is improved with marching tunes, and whether Robert Schumann was suffering from schizophrenia or Alzheimer's disease? This broad but comprehensive book deals with history and new discoveries about music and the brain. It provides a multi-disciplinary overview on music processing, its effects on brain plasticity, and the healing power of music in neurological and psychiatric disorders. In this context, the disorders the plagued famous musicians and how they affected both performance and composition are critically discussed, and music as medicine, as well as music as a potential health hazard are examined. Among the other topics covered are: how music fit into early conceptions of localization of function in the brain, the cultural roots of music in evolution, and the important roles played by music in societies and educational systems.

Topic: Music is interesting to almost everybody Orientation: This book looks at music and the brain both historically and in the light of the latest research findings Comprehensiveness: This is the largest and most comprehensive volume on "music and neurology" ever written! Quality of authors: This volume is written by a unique group of real world experts representing a variety of fields, ranging from history of science and medicine to neurology and musicology

Investigating the critical relationship between recovery, fatigue, working conditions, and societal pressures in the performing arts, this comprehensive text brings together international experts from psychology, medicine, and sport science. It highlights important research on recovery and its physiological and psychological implications for performing artists across music, dance, acting, and circus performance.Divided into four parts, this book contextualises recovery challenges in performing arts while maintaining positive health and well-being levels essential for performance. Chapters examine recovery from both individual and organisational perspectives, and address how recovery and well-being can be induced and sustained, preventing overuse, and enabling creativity and self-efficacy. Contributors provide scientific state-of-the-art approaches answering crucial questions that also address societal and systemic challenges in the performing arts. They provide valuable insights for researchers, while offering practical guidance for anyone involved in supporting the physical and mental health of performing artists across diverse artistic disciplines.This essential resource will be of interest to both academic communities and applied practice professionals concerned with human health and well-being in performing arts, including artistic directors, performing artists, coaches, conductors, composers, and healthcare teams working with performers.

Investigating the critical relationship between recovery, fatigue, working conditions, and societal pressures in the performing arts, this comprehensive text brings together international experts from psychology, medicine, and sport science. It highlights important research on recovery and its physiological and psychological implications for performing artists across music, dance, acting, and circus performance.Divided into four parts, this book contextualises recovery challenges in performing arts while maintaining positive health and well-being levels essential for performance. Chapters examine recovery from both individual and organisational perspectives, and address how recovery and well-being can be induced and sustained, preventing overuse, and enabling creativity and self-efficacy. Contributors provide scientific state-of-the-art approaches answering crucial questions that also address societal and systemic challenges in the performing arts. They provide valuable insights for researchers, while offering practical guidance for anyone involved in supporting the physical and mental health of performing artists across diverse artistic disciplines.This essential resource will be of interest to both academic communities and applied practice professionals concerned with human health and well-being in performing arts, including artistic directors, performing artists, coaches, conductors, composers, and healthcare teams working with performers.

Musiker werden mit ihrer ganz eigenen neuronalen Organisation und ihren speziellen beruflichen Belastungen oft als eine „schwierige“ Patientengruppe empfunden. Dieses Buch macht auf wichtige Besonderheiten bei der Diagnosestellung und Therapie aufmerksam. Der Schwerpunkt liegt auf der Darstellung spezieller neurologischer Krankheitsbilder: Nervenkompressionssyndrome, Schmerzsyndrome, Dystonien und zerebrale Durchblutungsstörungen. Sie sind häufig schwer zu diagnostizieren und zu therapieren.An den klinisch-neurologische Teil schließt sich eine Darstellung der Auswirkungen neurologischer Erkrankungen auf das Musizieren und ein Kapitel über neuro-psychiatrische Erkrankungen bei Musikern an. Neuropädiatrische Aspekte, wie Belastungsfaktoren, Prävention und Hochbegabung beim Kind runden dieses Praxisbuch des bekannten Musikmediziners Eckart Altenmüller ab. Neurologische Erkrankungen bei Musikern richtet sich an alle Ärzte und Therapeuten, die Musiker in Behandlung haben oder sich einen Einblick in die Neurologie bei Musikern verschaffen wollen.

Warum haben wir Menschen Musik?  Die komplett überarbeitete Neuauflage des erfolgreichen Sachbuchs, jetzt mit zwei neuen Kapiteln zur Musiktherapie und zur Evolution der Musik:Wie entfaltet Musik ihre Wirkung? Was geht dabei in unserem Gehirn vor? Fördert Musik die Intelligenz? Dient sie dem Gruppenzusammenhalt? Teilt Musik Emotionen mit? Macht Musik gesund? Dieses Buch erklärt die zahlreichen Wirkungen von Musik auf Fühlen und Denken, auf die Organisation von Gruppen sowie auf unsere körperliche und geistige Gesundheit. Im ersten Teil des Werkes werden die evolutionären Grundlagen der Musikwahrnehmung und des Musizierens dargestellt. Die faszinierenden neuen Erkenntnisse zu den positiven, aber auch den negativen Auswirkungen intensiven Musizierens auf das Nervensystem werden in den folgenden Kapiteln geschildert. Glücklicherweise macht Musik nur selten krank – viel wichtiger sind die bislang noch gar nicht ausgeschöpften heilenden Potenziale und die große Macht der positiven Emotionen, die durch Musik ausgelöst werden. Mit diesen erfreulichen und zukunftsweisenden Aspekten schließt das Buch, das jeden ansprechen wird, der eine Liebe zur Musik empfindet, sei es als Musizierender oder als Hörer.