Is music an evolutionary adaptation?
In contemplating the function and origin of music, a number of scholars have considered whether music might be an evolutionary adaptation. This article reviews the basic arguments related to evolutionary claims for music. Although evolutionary theories about music remain wholly speculative, musical behaviors satisfy a number of basic conditions, which suggests that there is indeed merit in pursuing possible evolutionary accounts.
Huron
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School of Music, Ohio State University, 1866 College Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA. huron.1@osu.edu
D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000883:Anthropology; D005075:Biological Evolution; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008954:Models, Biological; D009146:Music