Cognitive extension and musical consciousness

This chapter explores how the notion of cognitive extension, which is the idea that cognitive processes can be extended through material resources, reshapes the way we think about musical consciousness. A brief review of recent work on cognitive extension by Andy Clark is provided and linked with Edwin Hutchins’s idea of distributed cognition. Examples of cognitive extension from musical practices are discussed, including mnemonic devices employed during the middle ages, musical scores, and the use of musical instruments. It is proposed that musical sound itself can be thought of as a means through which musical thought is extended out into the world, especially where a distributed cognitive system is manifested as a musical ensemble.