Call for Book or Chapter Proposals: Music and Brain Research - Deadline June 30, 2018

Scope of the call

Vernon Press invites book or chapter proposals on the theme of “Music and Brain Research” for our book series in Cognitive Science and Psychology. All areas of study, with the common goal of representing the current state of music perception and cognitive neuroscience of music, are encouraged to submit, including disciplines such as Psychology, Anthropology, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Education, Musicology and more. Contributions may be monographs, chapters, or edited collections of original chapters.

Scientific knowledge of the mind has advanced considerably. We have arguably learned more about the brain in the past three decades than in all the rest of history. Cognitive research is elucidating the functioning of the brain – once a collection of deep mysteries – and is carrying the biological sciences into areas traditionally reserved for the social sciences and the humanities. One of these mysteries is music. Music is a specific hallmark of humankind. From before birth, humans respond to music, and musical experience persists throughout life, even when other cognitive processes or sensory perception experiences are impaired. These facts, together with affirmations such as that brain power is augmented when children are exposed to music, and that our brain “changes” its structure following musical training, are suggestive of the importance music on our cognitive development.

The call comes as a timely response to numerous recent advances in this area (Peretz, 2016; Habibi & Damasio 2014; Sacks, 2007) and the need to take stock of the current state of the art. Its scope is broad and interdisciplinary. Relevant questions include (but are not limited to): How does music processing occur in the brain? Why is human brain musical? What is the relation between music and speech processing? Can music therapy improve cognitive impairment? How does brain plasticity respond to musical training? What are the links between music and socialization?  Possible topics include (non-comprehensive list):

• brain correlates of music processing
• brain plasticity & other benefits of music in the brain
• resiliency of the musical brain
• cognitive, affective and motor components of music perception
• computational and neuroscientific bases of musical understanding and behavior
• why is music special? neurobiological mechanisms underlying amusia

Deadline for proposals: May 31,  2019

How to submit your proposal

Please submit one-page monograph proposals at submissions@vernonpress.com including an annotated summary/motivation, a short biographical note and (if applicable) a list of similar titles. Proposals that treat other topics in Cognitive Science or Psychology are also welcome. More information on what we look for in a proposal is available on our website.

About the publisher

Vernon Press is an independent publisher of scholarly books in the social sciences and humanities. We work closely with authors, academic associations, distributors and library information specialists to identify and develop high quality, high impact titles. Recent and forthcoming titles in our series in Cognitive Science and Psychology include Cognitive Science: Recent Advances and Recurring Problems and Self-Preservation at the Center of Personality. More information on www.vernonpress.com

References

Habibi, A. & Damasio, A. (2014) Music, Feelings, and the Human Brain. Psychomusicology: Music, Mind, and Brain. Vol. 24, No. 1, 92–102

Peretz, I. (2016) Neurobiology of Congenital Amusia. Trends in Cognitive Sciences , vol. 20, pp. 857-867

Sacks, Oliver (2007) Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain. Alfred  A. Knopf, New York