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Lecture series6 lectures

The Music of Nature

Professor Milton Mermikides · Gresham College

Start with lecture 1 At Gresham College

About

Do animals make music? Are the languages of whales and birds truly songs? To answer this, we must first understand what we mean by music as human animals—and how it might emerge across the animal kingdom. From Messiaen’s transcriptions of bird calls to the rhythmic gaits of horses echoing in the blues, we’ll hear how animal behaviours form an unwitting orchestra and explore whether music is uniquely human or a shared language with our animal cousins.

Lectures

  1. Music of Animals 2025-10-29 · Audio
  2. Music of Light and Colour 2026-01-14 · Audio
  3. Music of Earth and Space 2026-02-25 · Audio
  4. Music of the Mind 2026-04-15 · YouTube
  5. Music of the Body 2026-05-13 · Audio
  6. Music of Sleep and Dreams 2026-06-19 · Audio

Credits and licence

Institution
Gresham College
Speaker
Professor Milton Mermikides
Year
2025
Level
For everyone
Language
English
Subjects
Biology, Earth and environment, Astronomy and space, Art, architecture and design, Music
Source
Gresham College
Licence
Educational use (Gresham College's terms), as Gresham College states it. Gresham College's terms
Attribution
Gresham College states: "We positively encourage the use of the Gresham College lecture transcripts, audio and video files for educational purposes. However, we do not allow use of Gresham College materials for commercial, personal or institutional gain."
Who can watch
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