Reading notes: 'Music: A Subversive History'

By Ted Gioia. It's absolutely great, and the sort of great book that makes me expect to live a richer life now that I've read it. One small example: this article I saw while I was reading the book makes a lot more sense than it otherwise would have. There's really no substitute for knowing a ton and working really hard on a book. Music clearly comes out of a lifetime of intellectual work and years of focused research. One might agree or disagree at any point, but I never suspect that that he's missing a point or overlooking something. I'd recommend Gioia's example to philosophers (or anyone else doing research in the humanities). Focus on primary sources. Weight early secondary sources heavily. Never lose sight of institutional forces shaping orthodox interpretation. Pay close attention to adjacent fields. Also: sociology matters, but never ignore psychology, even when you have a lot more sociological evidence than psychological evidence. Every page is useful and gripping. (And for…