David Huron
International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition
Evanston, Illinois, August 6, 2004
Should cognitive musicologists be worried about the imminent disappearance of most of the world's musical cultures? In this discussion paper, it is suggested that the goal of understanding the musical mind necessarily presupposes an exploration of possible cross-cultural differences in mental operation. It is suggested that ethnomusicologists and cognitive musicologists need to set aside their differences in order to take advantage of a unique era in human history.
Those who study music should be concerned about the loss of cultural diversity for the same reason that biologists worry about the loss of biodiversity: we don't yet know what the loss will mean, but we do know that the loss will be irreversible.