Entertaining, informative and philosophical … An essential read

Extraordinary range … All the world and more is here

An ambitious and total history of music

Full of delightful nuggets … sends the reader back to a world of musical examples time and time again

Extraordinary … Ranging from the Geissenklösterle caves to K-Pop, from the lost music of the Aztecs to the role of song in hunter-gatherer societies, and drawing on a vast array of specialisations, from archaeoacoustics to ornithology, Spitzer utilises a breath-taking variety of sources … The Musical Human will make you think differently about music, about its place in your life and about its importance to human life tout court

Bold, compelling and ear-opening

A hugely ambitions work, but never daunting, and there’s something thought-provoking on every page … With scholarship, wit and passion, this book demonstrates that there is truly a soundtrack to human lives

A thrilling exploration of what music has meant and means to humankind

Music changed my life. It changes my mood, my thoughts, my feelings and changes the way I move. Now I know why. This book has connected me to not only the language of love but the language of life. If you can just hum, whistle out of tune or shake a leg at a wedding then open the pages of this book and know why! A revelation

Blurring the lines between musical theory, anthropology, biology and history, Spitzer posits that music is one of our most defining achievements, fundamental to the human experience

An amazing book, tying together research in archaeology, anthropology, music history, and human origins to form a compelling and exciting account of the many ways music has developed across the world and across time. Michael Spitzer has pulled off the impossible: a Guns, Germs and Steel for music