Introduction

This chapter presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in part 2 of this book. The part addresses some fundamental questions that have intrigued music psychologists and music educators alike, concerning how humans process, listen, appraise and respond to music. It considers critical implications for music education and community music of research focused around those questions. The part draws on developmental psychology and neuroscientific perspectives in his discussion of the development of music processing in the musical mind at various points across the lifespan. It focuses on the different experiences – and subsequent implications for cognition, learning and emotion – associated with listening versus hearing music. The part raises many critical questions about how we listen to and respond to music and how our listening experiences may be guided or enhanced within education or community contexts. It discusses the development and maintenance of musical preferences across the lifespan.