★The author of this book, Michel Rochon, is a renowned Canadian science journalist, columnist, lecturer, pianist, and composer who has been dedicated to popular science writing in the fields of medicine and health for more than 30 years.
★In his representative work “Music and Your Brain,” Rochon uses insights from neuroscience, anthropology, AI, and cosmology to explain why music moves us. The book was nominated for the 2019 Hubert-Reeves Prize and the Opus Award, and has been translated into six languages, including Chinese, Arabic, and Italian.
★In this latest work, Rochon takes a broad historical perspective on the evolution of music itself, examines the role of technology in that evolution, and provides a much-needed overview of the current state of AI-generated music—yet his analysis goes far beyond mere hot topics, offering a remarkably expansive and forward-looking vision.

Since the invention of the first bone flute in the Paleolithic era, technology has been an integral part of music history. From the design of musical notation to the electrification of instruments, each of these major innovations has enabled us to push the boundaries of musical expression and creation.

Yet today’s advances in AI have fundamentally changed the game: for the first time, music is no longer confined to a dialogue among humans. The implications are manifold and complex, touching on issues such as copyright and authorship, the thousands of jobs in the music industry, and the intimate and profound connection we share with the music we listen to.
Drawing on insights from a wide range of fields—including musicology, archaeology, neuroscience, and computer science—this book invites us to recognize the fundamental and precious bond between music and our humanity.

Michel Rochon

Michel Rochon is a Canadian science and medical journalist, writer, speaker, composer, and pianist.

As a pianist and composer, Rochon has recorded five solo piano albums, collaborated with musician and composer Pierre Boudreault on an album featuring piano and electronic music, and composed the music for “The Legend of the White Piano,” a film that received a music nomination at the 2018 International Sound Film Festival. Since 2016, Rochon has been performing piano concerts themed “The Brain and Music.” He is deeply interested in improvisation, and his music is inspired by jazz pianist Keith Jarrett.

In 2011, Rochon’s work in science communication and his music-related projects led him to participate in composer André Hamel’s multidisciplinary performance “Urnos,” produced by the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec and winner of several awards.

Rochon studied physiology at McGill University in Montreal (1978–1981) and later studied film at Concordia University in the United States (1982–1983). From the mid-1980s to 2017, he worked as a journalist for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, contributing to numerous television and radio programs. In 2000, he completed studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received training in public health risk management and neuroscience. Since retiring from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 2017, he has been a lecturer in television journalism at the School of Media at the Université du Québec in Montreal. He also serves as a strategic advisor at the New World Institute.