ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the development and maintenance of musical preferences across the lifespan. A framework for understanding musical preferences over the life course comprises listener, nature of the music and context. The chapter considers each of these determinants of preferences within diverse contexts and across different phases of the life course, including infancy, childhood, adolescence and adulthood. The concept of open-earedness is discussed with regard to its relationship with changes in tolerance for musical styles. Implications for music education and community music are traced out.
