The Listening Book and The Musical Life

... is about rediscovering the power of listening as an instrument of self-discovery and personal transformation. By exploring our capacity for listening to sounds and for making music, we can awaken and release our full creative powers.

In this 2-CD audio edition of the classic book, W. A. Mathieu presents exercises designed to help you explore and expand your capacity for listening, appreciate the connection between sound, music, and every-day life, and discover the creative possibilities of music-making.

You can listen to several complete tracks on the Tracks page.

This series of short, engaging talks - complete with musical accompaniment - range from the serious to the whimsical, including fear of music, listening to animals, the rhythms of walking, and being a “life drummer.” The Listening Book is a joyful tool for opening up the world of music-making for everyone.

The audio material, first issued on cassette tapes in 1991, has been digitally remastered for release in 2008.

In addition, this 2-CD package contains new material from The Musical Life, W. A. Mathieu's second book.

In the words of Pete Seeger:

"Mathieu has found the words to
tell the power of music"

From the preface of The Musical Life:

Being musical does not necessarily mean being a musician; it doesn't mean playing the piano at parties or composing songs for lovers. It is a way of being awake, an angle of perception, a tilt of the ear. The musical ear knows it is innately in tune with the universe. A person can talk or move musically, or simply be harmonious without being a fine violinist You do not need a musician's craft to know that both you and music are made from the same design.