Last summer, I took my niece shopping at an urban clothing store in New York City. While she shopped, I couldn’t help but notice the music blaring on the store’s speaker system—it left my ears ringing ...

The music darts into the ear, does its subtle job in the subcortex of the brain, then slips out the other ear without saying goodbye. The listener is all but unaware that he has heard anything, but ...

It’s easy to dismiss the impact of background music on a meal, but think of it this way: If you had just settled in for a romantic dinner and death metal started playing, you might consider taking ...

Joanna Newsom's music tends to flummox the casual listener. It's not good background music (too dynamic), not good work music (too wordy), not good exercise music (where's that four-on-the-floor beat?

You've probably heard that classical music is good for studying, taking tests and doing creative work. This idea stems from the "Mozart Effect," a term coined in 1993 when scientists discovered that ...