Aesthetics and Music is a fresh, provocative exploration of the key concepts and arguments in musical aesthetics. It makes an eloquent case for a humanistic, meritocratic and genuinely aesthetic conception of music and musical understanding. Anyone interested in what contemporary philosophy has to say about music as an art will find this thought-provoking and highly enjoyable book required reading.

Thinkers discussed range from Pythagoras and Plato to Kant, Nietzsche and Adorno. Areas of music covered include classical, popular and traditional music, and jazz. This updated edition features new material, including three new chapters on the evolutionary perspective, words and music and music and language. There are guides to further reading, and new dialogues with some contemporary thinkers and musicians.