Chair : Daniel Pressnitzer

There is at least one undisputable universal related to music: in all the cultures that we know of, and throughout recorded history, people all around the world have engaged in music. Music has also been the focus of much study, placing it at the convergence of Art and Science. The aim of this session is to illustrate the current interdisciplinary investigations of music, combining the new approaches of cognitive neuroscience on the one hand and ethnomusicology on the other hand. Specifically, the questions asked revolve around the presence or absence of universals in music. It is clear that there exists a very wide range of musical practices and systems across cultures and epochs. It is also clear, however, that each of these systems obeys a complex set of rules, explicit or implicit. So, is music a universal language, or a mosaic of musical idioms? Are there some fundamental building blocks to be found under the musical surface of all systems? Is it possible to interpret musical practices in the light of our current knowledge about human cognition and brain function? How relevant for the description of musical systems is the consideration of their social context?