As artificial intelligence (AI) has transitioned from a specialised tool into a ubiquitous infrastructure embedded in daily life, its integration into music education is reshaping how people learn, create and interact with music. Scholarly efforts have focused on pedagogical approaches and their effectiveness across different teaching and learning contexts, yet the philosophical foundations, values and purposes of music education in an environment increasingly shaped by AI remain underexplored. A New Philosophy of Music Education for the Era of AI addresses this gap by exploring how music education can help individuals achieve self-discovery in this transformative era. The book adopts a dialogical approach that brings Chinese and Western philosophical perspectives into conversation, drawing on the distinct intellectual and cultural backgrounds of its two authors, Jiaxing Xie and David G. Hebert.
The book begins with the question, ‘What kind of existence does humanity face today?’, which serves as the title of the introduction and prompts music teachers to reflect on human existence and the self within a society reshaped by AI. The chapter also provides an overview of the opportunities and challenges associated with the emergence of AI, emphasising the urgent need for philosophical transformation in music education. The narrative continues in Chapter 1, whose title poses two further questions, outlining the rationale for the proposed transformative change and examining where we currently stand, while also illustrating some of the practical issues in music education arising from the increasing sophistication of AI.
Chapter 2 serves as the theoretical foundation of the book, drawing on a wide range of theories and concepts, including posthumanism, consciousness and the framework of 4E cognition – embodied, embedded, extended and enactive (Varela et al., Reference VARELA, THOMPSON and ROSCH1991). In particular, the chapter foregrounds Prigogine’s theory of dissipative structures and Harari’s notion of fictive stories, integrating them to argue that human society is organised by emotionally driven social imagination rather than rigid scientific rationality. In addressing the question, ‘What remains of humanity?’, when AI surpasses humans in computational speed and data-processing capabilities, the chapter concludes by proposing the philosophical mission of music education in the AI era:
In the AI era, the mission of music education is no longer just to cultivate musical skills; it is to stimulate individual creativity through music, enabling people to face the rapidly changing social and technological environment and find self-worth and meaning in a culturally diverse and rapidly evolving world … it not only needs to impart musical knowledge but also help students discover and harness their emotions and imagination. (p. 75)
Building upon the theoretical foundations established in the previous chapter, Chapter 3 proposes the theory of meta-body intelligence, an original framework that recognises humanity as a layered body-system of intelligence. This theoretical framework highlights the unique role of music education in facilitating a leap in human wisdom, emphasising how music educators can shift from authoritative figures to facilitators of emotional expression and self-discovery among music learners.
Chapter 4 continues the discussion of the theory of meta-body intelligence and explores how music education can help individuals navigate the threats of depersonalisation brought about by the growing presence of AI. It argues that the sonic and embodied experiences of music learning can help individuals become unique sources of meaning rather than passive recipients of societal structures. As a practical takeaway, the chapter also encourages teachers to guide students in reconstructing their life narratives through musical engagement.
Chapter 5 attempts to move away from influential, and perhaps dominant, positivist approaches in music education, advocating a pedagogical approach that applies the aforementioned theory of meta-body intelligence as a starting point that (re)centres humans as creative sources of meaning through self-discovery. It extends the original 4E framework by including ‘emotionalised’ as the 5th ‘E’, emphasising emotional awareness and engagement as important aspects of cognition in music education and enabling teachers to design emotionally driven learning experiences.
Chapter 6 explores the concept of balance in ancient Chinese philosophy – yin-yang and harmony in diversity – as well as the theory of non-equilibrium self-organisation that emerged from Western scientific traditions, offering a new way of understanding in music education. This novel perspective helps music teachers navigate the ongoing dynamic resonance of opposites within the music classroom, where stability and change are continually in flux. In this regard, the authors suggest that music teachers enhance their flexibility and resilience to achieve equilibrium as an objective and support the sustainability of the profession.
Chapter 7 summarises the main arguments of the book. In addition, the chapter offers opportunities for reflection on how AI may impact us in the future and how the ideas presented in the book can be further developed and applied in music teaching and learning contexts.
A New Philosophy of Music Education for the Era of AI is characterised by its attempt to break disciplinary boundaries between music education studies and traditional educational philosophy from both Western and Chinese perspectives. Rather than starting with generic questions such as ‘What is music?’ and ‘What is AI?’, the book takes a more human-centred perspective, exploring what it means to be human and what music education might become in a world increasingly shaped by AI. It comprehensively brings together different theories and concepts, philosophical views and perspectives to construct a new philosophy of music education centred on human creativity and self-discovery. The book provides new insights into the intersection of AI and music education beyond pedagogical concerns and practicalities, guiding readers to navigate more fundamental questions concerning the purposes, values and future direction of music education.
For readers not familiar with both Western and Chinese philosophical traditions, this book can be intellectually demanding. However, careful engagement with the book’s content, supported by its comprehensive coverage of relevant philosophical concepts, theories and perspectives, allows readers to gradually appreciate the connections between diverse ways of thinking and their implications for music education. In this regard, the book offers a timely philosophical intervention at a moment when people are increasingly embracing and relying on AI without critically reflecting on its broader implications for humanity or how society may be transformed by its growing presence. This book is a call for music educators to look beyond what AI can do and reconsider what it means to be human through music education.
