The Hum of the World

A Philosophy of Listening

Lawrence Kramer

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Paperback

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English

University of California Press
22 June 2021

Music; Theory of music & musicology; Music reviews & criticism; Philosophy of language; Literary studies: general; Social & political philosophy

The Hum of the World is an invitation to contemplate what would happen if we heard the world as attentively as we see it. Balancing big ideas, playful wit and lyrical prose, this imaginative volume identifies the role of sound in Western experience as the primary medium in which the presence and persistence of life acquires tangible form. The positive experience of aliveness is not merely in accord with sound, but inaccessible, even inconceivable, without it. Lawrence Kramer’s poetic book roves freely over music, media, language, philosophy, and science from the ancient world to the present, along the way revealing how life is apprehended through sounds ranging from pandemonium to the faint background hum of the world. This warm meditation on auditory culture uncovers the knowledge and pleasure waiting when we learn that the world is alive with sound.

By: Lawrence Kramer
Imprint: University of California Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 18mm
Weight: 363g
ISBN: 9780520382992
ISBN 10: 0520382994
Pages: 256
Publication Date: 22 June 2021
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Lawrence Kramer, Distinguished Professor of English and Music at Fordham University, is an award-winning composer and the author of fifteen previous books including The Thought of Music, winner of the 2017 ASACP Virgil Thomson Award for Outstanding Music Criticism.

Reviews for The Hum of the World: A Philosophy of Listening

"""Summing Up: Recommended."" * CHOICE * An Alex Ross ""Bookshelf"" recommendation * The Rest is Noise * ""The Hum of the World is a more-than-intriguing read and definitely one that will get you thinking about the role of sound within a cosmic context. . . . Recommended."" * Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians *"