Explore the science and culture behind musical taste with Dr. Nolan Gasser, the architect of Pandora Radio’s Music Genome Project and an expert in Music AI. Blending live performances, animations and insights from neuroscience, psychology, culture, emotion, and a pioneering mobile app that engages the audience in a new way, the program offers a one-of-a-kind immersive experience.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipHow to Watch Why You Like It: Decoding Musical Taste
Why You Like It: Decoding Musical Taste is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
About The Show
In WHY YOU LIKE IT: DECODING MUSICAL TASTE, composer and musicologist Dr. Nolan Gasser (the architect of Pandora Radio’s Music Genome Project and expert in Music AI) explores the science and culture behind our musical preferences. Blending live performances, animations and insights from neuroscience, psychology, culture, emotion, and a pioneering mobile app that engages the audience in a new way, the program offers a one-of-a-kind immersive experience.
The show features a brilliant set of musicians, including Grammy-winning vocalists Ledisi and Aymée Nuviola and Grammy-nominated Malika Tirolien, along with jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles. It also features Dr. Gasser’s all-star band, The Mighty Mighty, comprised of luminaries such as Tim Ries (The Rolling Stones), Jamie Hadad (Paul Simon) and others. This show will change how you listen to music and increase the joy you experience with every song you hear.
WHY YOU LIKE IT: DECODING MUSICAL TASTE also features a groundbreaking first-of-its-kind mobile app that accompanies the show and offers viewers a simple-to-use, immersive experience. While watching the program, viewers can engage with the Why You Like It app to enrich their understanding of what shapes their musical preferences. As the show unfolds, the app synchronizes in real time, presenting eight personalized questionnaires based on each individual’s personality, social tendencies, and unique traits. After completing all eight prompts, these responses fuel the creation of a custom playlist — spanning popular favorites to lesser-known gems — each track reflecting aspects of that viewer’s distinct musical identity. If any selection doesn’t strike a chord with the viewer, it can be easily skipped, encouraging exploration of new sounds. Beyond the playlist, a “deeper discovery” section on the app offers access to additional insights, allowing viewers to delve further into the scientific, cultural, and creative dimensions examined in the program and stay engaged long after the show is over.
The musical performances for WHY YOU LIKE IT were shot at UCLA’s Royce Hall. Gasser explains how listeners lock into a beat and feel the rhythm and groove, how the brain can predict it, and the emotional power that accompanies the experience — what makes us happy or sad, reflective or nostalgic when we hear a song. Other topics include the nature of sound, good vs bad taste, and the personality of music.
