This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You

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A legendary record-producer-turned-brain-scientist explains why you love the music you do in an antidote to the Spotify algorithm doldrums 'Extraordinary insights about music, emotion and the brain...An instant classic' Daniel Levitin, author of This Is Your Brain on Music This Is What It Sounds Like is a journey into the science and soul of music. It's also the story of a musical trailblazer who began as a humble audio tech in L.A. to become Prince's chief engineer for Purple Rain and one of the most successful female record producers of all time. Now an award-winning professor of cognitive neuroscience, Dr Susan Rogers takes readers behind the scenes of record-making and leads us to musical self-awareness. She explains that everyone possesses a unique 'listener profile', shows how being musical can mean actively listening, and encourages us to think about the records that define us. Lively and illuminating, this book will refresh your playlists, deepen your connection to artists, and change the way you listen to music. 'Superb... this book can show you how to be a better listener' Times Literary Supplement 'A provocative blend of studio stories and fascinating neuroscience' Alan Light, author of Let's Go Crazy- Prince and the Making of Purple Rain 'Fizzing with energy and insight...a crucial addition to the canon of music must-reads' Kate Hutchinson

Reviews

This Is What It Sounds Like is a revelation... extraordinary insights about music, emotion, and the brain... An instant classic, [it] should be read by anyone who has ever been moved by a piece of music-in other words, everyone -- Dr. Daniel J. Levitin, New York Times bestselling author of This Is Your Brain on Music and The Organized Mind
If you've ever wondered why you love a song and what that says about you this book will help you understand why. Susan is one of the smartest people in the world of music and this book will help you hear music more deeply and more thoughtfully. You can tell why Prince loved working with her -- Tour, author of I Would Die 4 U: Why Prince Became an Icon
A deliciously nerdy resource for music lovers, and for anyone who thinks deeply about music and how it moves them -- Jessica Hopper, author of First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic
Susan Rogers found her superpower in the music world not as a musician, but as a master listener. Rogers' book is a gift to music listeners of all kinds - because in listening, we hear not only the music, we hear the sonic signature of our own soul -- Dan Charnas, New York Times bestselling author of Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm
Why do we like the music we like With a provocative blend of studio stories and fascinating neuroscience, celebrated producer and engineer Susan Rogers sets out to answer this eternal mystery - and, along the way, just might turn you into a better listener -- Alan Light, music journalist and author of Let's Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple Rain
A groundbreaking study of great intervention. The immense value of the insights into tastes, preferences, and aesthetics on offer cannot be underestimated. Beautifully written, this is the book that scholars and fans of popular music across all disciplines have impatiently waited for. It is truly inspiring, the kind of book you fall in love with, that gets us to reflect over how and why records become a condition of the heart -- Stan Hawkins, Professor of Musicology, University of Oslo
Susan Rogers is one of the greatest listeners and feelers of music... This Is What It Sounds Like is just like having a great conversation with her... she has opened my mind to how we hear music, and has once again inspired me as both listener and musician -- Steven Page, Barenaked Ladies
An essential music handbook - not only for its smart exploration of why we're drawn to different genres and styles but for its joyous celebration of the art of listening. Susan Rogers's words dance on the page with their sheer enthusiasm and eloquence. The way she illuminates what makes music so effective - from breaking down a Kanye West instrumental to the vocal skill of Frank Sinatra - will have you reconsidering songcraft and the way you process it. I wish I'd had a book like this when I was starting out as a music journalist. And, of course, I could read her personal stories about being in the studio with Prince forever. This Is What It Sounds Like is a triumph of the personal, technical and philosophical, fizzing with energy and insight, and a crucial addition to the canon of music must-reads -- Kate Hutchinson, journalist and broadcaster
Like a therapist that untangled my musical relationships, Susan Rogers helped me understand my past and gave me a map to work out where I want to go next. I understood why I love the records I do and now I've got a map for my next treasure hunt -- Mobeen Azhar, award-winning journalist and filmmaker
The mysterious gravitational tractor beam of musical obsession that has directed my entire life has now been explained so eloquently by Susan Rogers. She has guided me on a righteous riff to the engine room of my own unique musical journey -- Craig Northey, musician and film and TV composer
Susan Rogers is the only person who could have written this incredible book. Her passionate love of music, her vast experience creating history in the recording studio, and her deep knowledge about the subject helped me understand WHY I love the music in my life. She will open your ears and eyes in a way you won't expect. I cannot get this book out of my head -- Duane Tudahl, Author, Television Producer
Susan Rogers is unusually well qualified to investigate the mysterious, drug-like impact music has on the physical body and the emotional mind. ... Rogers' theories, both scientific and romantic, come as close to a breakthrough to anything I've read * The Big Issue *
Rogers... is a superb listener... [and This Is What It Sounds Like] can show you how to be a better listener - and, perhaps more importantly, how listening, too, is an art and a fundamental part of the creative process * Times Literary Supplement *

Author Bio

Dr. Susan Rogers (Author) Susan E Rogers, PhD. is a Professor of Music Cognition at Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she received the Berklee Distinguished Faculty Award, the college's highest teaching honor. Prior to her science career, Rogers was a multi-platinum record producer, recording engineer, and mixer. She is best known for her work with Prince ("Purple Rain") as well as David Byrne, Barenaked Ladies, and many others. Ogi Ogas (Author) Ogi Ogas, PhD, is a mathematical neuroscientist and the author of Journey of the Mind- How Thinking Emerged from Chaos. He was a Department of Homeland Security Fellow and a Research Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.