NJIT in the News

The research of David B. Rothenberg, professor of humanities at New Jersey Institute of Technology, explores the world of interspecies music. In 2005, he published Why Birds Sing, the first general interest book to examine bird song from the combined perspectives of science, music, and poetry and the culmination of his interdisciplinary work since he began teaching at NJIT in 1992.  Why Birds Sing has been published in the U.S., England, Australia, Italy, Germany, Spain, Korea, China, and Taiwan as both a book and compact disc.

His most recent book and CD, Thousand Mile Song: Whale Music in a Sea of Sound, chronicles the rich, underwater universe of whale sound. To produce the new material, he traveled from Hawaii to Russia to play his bass clarinet while recording the sounds of whales in their native habitats. Thousand Mile Song was named one of the ten best science and technology books for 2008 by Booklist on Line, a publication of the American Library Association..

In 2008, Rothenberg received NJIT's Excellence in Research Award for the College of Science and Liberal Arts. The award is presented annually in recognition of a sustained record of contributions that have enhanced the reputation of NJIT.

Rothenberg edited The Book of Music and Nature (Wesleyan University Press, 2001), and Parliament of Minds (SUNY Press, 1999) interviews with leading philosophers in conjunction with a public broadcasting television series of the same name, of which he was a co-producer. He also is the editor of the Terra Nova book series (MIT Press) presenting environmental issues as culture, not only policy. His own writing has been anthologized in The Best Spiritual Writing 1999 edited by Philip Zaleski (Harper San Francisco) and The Soul of Nature: Visions of a Living Earth by M. Tobias. His articles have appeared in Parabola, Orion, The Nation, Wired, and other publications.  In addition, he is a composer and jazz clarinetist who has released seven CDs, one of which, On the Cliffs of the Heart, was named one of the top 10 releases of 1995 by Jazziz magazine.

Rothenberg received his PhD from Boston University.  

Last update: 2/6/09