Why have humans evolved a liking of music?

Because humans developed techniques to feed and shelter themselves that enabled them to have spare time to waste on frivolous non survival activities.

It maybe anthropomorphising them... but many people report dogs and cats responding positively or negatively to particular music too.

That's an extremely interesting question, Consciosmess. I remember reading something, re importance of, what we now call PRaT, (maybe irregular beats) in early human communication, drums and stuff. Those irregularities sometimes , make music interesting for me. Perhaps it's something to do with tension in the music, or hypertension in my case.

Going slightly tangentially, I heard Richard Spaven, with Naim's Stuart McCallum earlier this year, during a guitar/drum Q/A session at Leeds College of Music. Spaven demonstrated "Broken Beats" (hip-hop influenced) The result of their work, can be heard on Stuart McCallum's  "City" album, on Naim Label, the sound quality is exemplary , as we should expect. I'm not paid by Naim , or Stuart, but if you want to hear some amazing music, and test the PRaT of your system "City", is a must listen.

If "City" isn't your usual cuppa, then maybe try Bach?

Any Musicologists out there?

"Evolutionary scientists believe that a musical culture would have helped prehistoric human species to survive because the music coordinates emotions, helps important messages to be communicated, motivates people to identify with a group, and motivates individuals to support other group members."

I presume it does not require people to understand language either to get these benefits.

Just started reading 'The Music Instinct: How Music Works and Why We Can't Do Without It' by Philip Ball which I am hoping will answer your question. It takes issue with the Steven Pinker position but I haven't read far so I do not know gotten to an alternative explanation yet. He does note that music is prevalent in all human societies and, as far as we can tell, throughout all human history. This does cast the Steven Pinker view in doubt.

Hans

Hans has beaten me to the mention of Philip Ball's excellent book, which does indeed make a good job of summarising the various theories about the emergence of music in humans. If I remember correctly (spoiler alert), the situation is as follows:

1) All human societies, without exception so far as is currently known, have developed some sort of music - in many cases, independently of any contact with the rest of humanity. Also, as far as can be reliably said, music is not a recent invention either. This cannot be coincidental.

2) No other animal, without exception as far as is currently known, has developed anything even slightly akin to music. Some chimpanzee societies have been observed banging sticks on logs in a way that some observers have tried to claim is musical, but the consensus is that it is not. This makes 1) seem even more significant.

3) Various theories have been proposed as to why music might give a group an evolutionary advantage (mating ritual/social bonding/many more), but those who write on it seem to be so easily able to find exceptions that the current consensus seems to be 'we don't know' with footnotes to the effect that it could be a mixture of any or all of these effects. Certainly, music's effect on brain activity (as seen in fMRI scans) is more or less unique, insofar as listening to music seems to give the brain a peculiarly comprehensive form of exercise. The side effects of brain activity stimulation could, of course, lead to their own evolutionary advantages.

I remember finishing this section of Ball's book with a feeling of delight that music should be so universal in the human experience, but that we have so far failed to convincingly account for why this should be. And it's still just so damn great.

Mark

I xcellent replies thanks!

I will invest in Philip Ball's book.

And anything by Terence McKenna.How the influence of the witch doctor in tribal cultures set the course of consciousness- consciousmess !

as mathematicians have posited that math exists outside of human inference, so to does music excist out of human perceptions, just needed to tune in.