Temperament

“Isacoff . . . untangles the complexities . . . with the aplomb of a virtuoso pianist playing scales.” —The New York Times Book Review

“A thrilling story that is as accessible as it is absorbing. . . . This is a whirlwind tour through the history of Western culture, told with flair and grace.” —National Review

“Immensely entertaining, original and informative. [Temperament’s] most persuasive weapon is the unquenchable passion of its author.” —The Economist

“Admirable. . . . [Isacoff] writes engagingly. . . . [about] a time when there existed a glorious synthesis of music and mathematics, and in the imaginations of scientists and philosophers and musicians it wove the entire universe into a grand design." —The New Republic

“Charming. . . . As much a whirlwind tour of Western culture’s big ideas as it is a musicological investigation.” —Los Angeles Times

“The pleasure here is that it gives readers a glimpse of the oceanic depths of musical metaphors and mysteries still unsolved by cognitive science and evolutionary psychology.” —Wilson Quarterly

“A sweeping history of medieval and Renaissance European intellectual achievement, in which the question of tuning assumes a speaking part. . . . Temperament should appeal not only to music lovers but also to fans of cultural and scientific history.” —Time Out New York

“An astounding and accessible journey through the culture-defining narrative hidden in arcane music theory. Isacoff does a wondrous job.” —The Onion

“This lucid, humanist study is as much fun to read as a murder mystery.” —San Jose Mercury News

“[Brings] together aspects of science, philosophy, history, poetry, religion, and music in a compact yet compelling narrative.” —Library Journal