Daniel Levitin

Daniel J. Levitin
Levitin in 2015
Born (1957-12-27) December 27, 1957 (age 66)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican, Canadian
Alma materMassachusetts Institute of Technology
Berklee College of Music
Stanford University (B.A., 1992)
University of Oregon (MSc, 1993; PhD, 1996).
Known forLevitin effect, This Is Your Brain on Music, The World in Six Songs, The Organized Mind, A Field Guide to Lies, Successful Aging (published as The Changing Mind in the U.K.)
AwardsSee "Awards" section
Scientific career
FieldsMusic cognition, cognitive neuroscience of music, cognitive psychology
Institutions
Academic advisorsRoger Shepard, Michael Posner, Douglas Hintzman, John R. Pierce, Stephen Palmer
Notable studentsRegina Nuzzo, Susan Rogers
Websitedaniellevitin.com levitinlab.com

Daniel Joseph Levitin, FRSC (born December 27, 1957) is an American-Canadian polymath,[1] cognitive psychologist, neuroscientist, writer, musician, and record producer.[2] He is the author of four New York Times best-selling books, including This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession, (Dutton/Penguin 2006; Plume/Penguin 2007) which has sold more than 1 million copies.[3]

Levitin is a James McGill Professor Emeritus of psychology, behavioral neuroscience and music at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada; a Founding Dean of Arts & Humanities at Minerva University; and a Distinguished Faculty Fellow at the Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley. He is the Director of the Laboratory for Music Perception, Cognition, and Expertise at McGill.[4] He is a former member of the Board of Governors of the Grammys, a consultant to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, a fellow of the Psychonomic Society, and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC). He has appeared frequently as a guest commentator on NPR and CBC. He has published scientific articles on absolute pitch, music cognition, neuroanatomy, and directional statistics.[5][6]

His five books have all been international bestsellers, and collectively have sold more 3 million copies worldwide: This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession (2006),[7][8][9] The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature (2008), The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload (2014), A Field Guide to Lies: Critical Thinking in the Information Age (2016) and Successful Aging (2020). I Heard There Was A Secret Chord: Music As Medicine was released in August 2024 by W. W. Norton, receiving advance praise from Paul McCartney, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Bob Weir, Michael Connelly and others.

Levitin also worked as a music consultant, producer and sound designer on albums by Blue Öyster Cult, Chris Isaak, and Joe Satriani among others;[10] produced punk bands including MDC and The Afflicted; and served as a consultant on albums by artists including Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Brook;[11][12] and as a recording engineer for Santana, Jonathan Richman, O.J. Ekemode and the Nigerian Allstars, and The Grateful Dead.[13] Records and CDs to which he has contributed have sold more than 30 million copies.[12][14]

  1. ^ Ahmed, W. (2019). The Polymath:Unlocking the Power of Human Versatility. Wylie.
  2. ^ "Executive Turntable". Billboard. January 2000.
  3. ^ "Nielsen Bookscan". online.nielsenbookscan.net.
  4. ^ Laboratory for Music Perception, Cognition and Expertise[permanent dead link], daniellevitin.com
  5. ^ Parncutt, R.; Levitin, D.J. (2001). "Absolute Pitch". In S. Sadie (ed.). The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. New York: St. Martins Press. pp. 37–39.
  6. ^ Levitin, D. J.; Rogers. S.E. (December 2005). "Absolute pitch: Perception, coding, and controversies" (PDF). Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 9 (1): 26–33. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2004.11.007. PMID 15639438. S2CID 15346652.
  7. ^ "Oliver Sacks meets Jerry Garcia in 'This Is Your Brain on Music' by rocker-turned-neuroscientist Daniel Levitin'". Publishers Weekly. June 5, 2006.
  8. ^ "Books: Bestsellers: Top selling fiction and non-fiction titles (week of September 21". Maclean's. September 21, 2006.
  9. ^ "CHARTS Bestsellers (week ending Nov 05, 2006)". The Book Standard. November 5, 2006.
  10. ^ "Flying in a Blue Dream credits". Allmusic. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  11. ^ James Sullivan (August 20, 2006). "He's Rocking the World of Neuroscience". Boston Globe. Retrieved August 22, 2011.
  12. ^ a b Ann McIlroy (March 12, 2001). "Dr. Rock 'n' Roll". The Globe and Mail.
  13. ^ Susan Dominus (March 18, 2007). "Rockin' Boffin". London Daily Telegraph, Seven Magazine.
  14. ^ "La musique pour maître à penser". Découvrir. November–December 2002.