Henkjan Honing
Henkjan Honing is a full professor of Music Cognition at both the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Science of the University of Amsterdam (UvA). His current research explores the foundations of musicality—investigating its cognitive and biological underpinnings—and examines the extent to which this capacity is shared across species. Through an interdisciplinary approach, his aim is to define the cognitive and biological mechanisms that underpin musicality.
Honing has published over 250 scientific publications mostly in journals ranging from Computer Music Journal, Topics in Cognitive Science and Cognition to PNAS, Philosophical Transactions B. and Animal Cognition. Next to a research agenda (The Origins of Musicality, The MIT Press), he has published several books for the general public, including the English-language publications Music Cognition: The Basics (Routledge) and The Evolving Animal Orchestra (The MIT Press). Henkjan Honing's books and lectures are popular with a broad audience and are appreciated both inside and outside the scientific world.
Honing is a member-elect of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), the Koninklijke Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wetenschappen (KHMW), and the Academia Europaea. In 2024 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for Music Perception and Cognition (SMPC).
- See recent cv
- See recent review
- See recent podcast
- See recent public lecture
- See recent podcast in Dutch
- See recent interview in Folia
- See recent interview in NRC
Latest publications
Media attention
Some animals seem to appreciate music. What does that mean for human evolution?Salon.com
Ist Musikalität älter als die Menschheit?Spektrum.de
West-Afrikaanse chimpansees trommelen in een ander ritme dan hun verwanten uit Oost-AfrikaNRC
Zeeleeuw houdt beter maat dan jijRTL
Scientists once thought only humans could bob to music. Ronan the sea lion helped prove them wrongABC / AP
Henkjan Honing benoemd tot lid Academia EuropaeaUvA
Rhythmus im Blut. Sind Tiere musikalisch?Arte
10 jaar Universiteit van NederlandTijd voor Max
Henkjan Honing ontvangt Lifetime Achievement AwardNPO Radio 4
Why do humans sing? ヒトはなぜ歌うのかNHK | Frontiers
Courses
Evolution of Language and Music
In this course we survey different theories of the origins of music and language.
How Music Works: Music Cognition
Over the years it has become clear that all humans share a predisposition for music, just like we have for language. We all can perceive and enjoy music. This view is supported by a growing body of research from developmental psychology neuroscience and the many contributions from the field of music cognition. These studies indicate that our capacity for music has an intimate relationship with our cognition and underlying biology, which is particularly clear when the focus is on perception rather than production.
The aim of this course is to identify the cognitive, biological and mechanistic underpinnings for music cognition as key ingredients of musicality, to assess to what extent these are unique to humans, and by doing so providing insight in their potential biological origins. As such this course has the aspiration to lay a new, interdisciplinary and comparative foundation for the study of musicality.
In addition, this course will discuss recent developments in the research field of music cognition. Topics include a) the origins and evolution of musicality, b) the cognition of rhythm and melody, c) musical competence, d) relation between musical and non-musical abilities, and e) the similarities and differences between music and language. The topics might change due to recent developments.