According to Sacks[citation needed], Musicophilia was written in an attempt to widen the general populace's understanding of music and its effects on the brain.

As Sacks states at the outset of the book's preface, music is omnipresent, influencing human's everyday lives in how we think and act.

In doing so, Sacks concertizes each example by explaining the neurological factors that play into each patient's healing and treatment in ways that relate to a lay yet curious audience.

Kramer wrote, "Lacking the dynamic that propels Sacks's other work, Musicophilia threatens to disintegrate into a catalogue of disparate phenomena."

Kramer concluded his review by writing, "Sacks is, in short, the ideal exponent of the view that responsiveness to music is intrinsic to our makeup.

Sacks writes about Parkinson's disease, and how, similar to with people who suffer from Tourette's, music with a strong rhythmic beat can help with movement and coordination.

For example, an Alzheimer's patient would not be able to recognize his wife, but would still remember how to play the piano because he dedicated this knowledge to muscle memory when he was young.

[3] Since the 1970s, there have been multiple studies on the benefits of music therapy for clients with medical conditions, trauma, learning disabilities, and handicaps.

Most of the documented studies for children have shown a positive effect in promoting self-actualization and developing receptive, cognitive, and expressive capabilities.

[4][5] While the studies conducted with adults 18+ had overall positive effects, the conclusions were limited because of overt bias and small sample sizes.

Oliver Sacks, author of Musicophilia, acknowledges the unconscious effects of music as our body tends to join in the rhythmic motions involuntarily.

Sometimes family members observe immediate effects because selfhood is encouraged and nurtured and thus a child’s personality develops in response to music.

When music therapy was first introduced in tandem with other medical fields, it was mostly receptive and patients listened to live solo performances or pre-recorded songs.

From 2008-2012, the Department of Oncology/ Hematology of the University Medical Center in Hamburg-Eppendorf orchestrated a randomized pilot study to determine if music therapy helped patients cope with pain and reduce chemotherapy side effects.

Although emotional functioning scores increased and perception of pain improved significantly, they determined the outcome was inconclusive because patients have differing levels of manageable side effects and a hope to survive may influence expectations of treatment.