A 30-minute symphony can drag on if you don't know what to listen for. Conductor Robert Franz shares four tips to help you feel engrossed in the drama and emotion of classical music.

By Joshua BaroneCorinna da Fonseca-WollheimSeth Colter WallsZachary Woolfe and Oussama Zahr The New York Times’s classical music and opera critics see and hear much more than they review.

While this study, known as the "Mozart Effect," is debated, many researchers agree that classical music positively influences the brain by enhancing abstract thinking and mental clarity.