ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of research on the neurosemiotics of music, focusing on the neural systems underlying musical meaning. Emphasis is placed on emotional and other types of semantic associations, such as an ascending sequence of notes conjuring the image of a staircase. Additionally, we consider work on the timecourse of musical meaning, aiming to identify the points at which musical sounds become meaningful. Overall, this chapter summarizes evidence supporting music’s capacity to convey meaning on a remarkably fast timescale, thus contributing to our daily semiotic experiences.
