One of Bourdieu’s key contributions to academic engagement with music is his empirically supported claim that differences in musical taste are an effect of social class. I question whether Bourdieu identifies plausible mechanisms for explaining this association and argue that his account, because closely tied to class, fails to shed light on taste differences between other social groups. I suggest an alternative model, centered upon social influence and social networks, which works for all social groups and allows for the role of music in bridging as well as maintaining social divides.