5 Keahey

Megan Keahey

AMST-A354

31 May 2020

Positive Impacts of Music

Throughout all of human history and across the globe, music has remained an important aspect of any culture. Whether utilized for religious ceremonies, political celebrations, general entertainment, or, in most recent history, therapy, music is a commonality. However, music has a far greater impact to the human body than simple auditory pleasure. In fact, music has been shown to positively affect humans physically, mentally, and socially.

Most would consider the physical impact of music to end with the auditory reception of it, however, studies have shown music actually affects the body in a number of means. Alam Merriam, an ethnomusicologist who spent many years teaching at Indiana University before his death, identified in his textbook ten broad musical functions. These functions served as purposes for engaging in musical activity. His first category is actually: Music as an influence on physical response (Merriam The Anthropology of Music). An example of one such mean is through the manipulation of the body’s central physiological functions. This includes raising and lowering your heart rate and your blood pressure. A Norwegion medical journal states that music has the ability to “influence central physiological variables like blood pressure, heart rate, respiration, EEG measurements, body temperature and galvanic skin response… immune and endocrine function” (National Library of Medicine).

While people certainly gain emotional responses to music, the brain has actually been shown to physically respond to different types of music in different ways. For example, scans of the human brain taken while the subject listens to music have shown the brain lights up in response to the music and even lights up differently depending on the type of music and how much the subject enjoys it. A study done at Columbia University revealed that the brain can identify and physically respond to a subject’s favorite artist even when said subject cannot consciously recognize it themselves. Such was the case with Oliver Sacks, who agreed to undergo a study that compared the way his brain reacted to his favorite artist, Bach, and one he did not enjoy, Beethoven. He was given a device to manually rate his emotions to the song while a device scanned his brain. Even when he could not consciously tell which of the songs playing was Beethoven and which was Bach, his brain still responded more to the Bach song.

Oliver Sacks — Music and the Brain

https://youtu.be/AyY1ul_DbcQ

In most recent years, however, the power of music has become even more fully realized through the creation and use of music therapy. Music therapy, medically speaking, is defined as “a technique of complimentary medicine prescribed in a skilled manner by trained therapists…designed to help patients overcome physical, emotional, intellectual, and social challenges” (The Free Dictionary). As of present day, music therapy has been utilized as a complementary treatment for patients with Alzheimers, Parkinsons, and Autism. Particularly, for young children with ASD, music therapy has helped them improve communication, interpersonal skills, personal responsibility, and play, as well as help them identify and appropriately express their emotions. In addition, music therapy has been shown to positively affect joint attention, memory, visual recall as well as a plethora of different motor skills (American Music Therapy Association).

As well as affecting the body, music can also be utilized to affect and manipulate a subject’s emotions and mental wellbeing. This is most likely the effect most recognized by society and the most relatable the general public. Nearly every person can list a certain song or type of music that elicits a specific emotional response within them. Whether that is a song that always makes them jump to their feet and start singing and dancing in joy, or the song they always listen to to cry after a breakup, music has long been used to both amplify our emotional state and elicit a specific emotional response from our own bodies. For example, I personally create playlists entirely on the emotions they give me rather than actual songs. There are certain playlists I have saved for those days where you just need a good cry and others that get my blood pumping and energize me for the day. This type of mental manipulation through music can directly be seen within the songs used in movie soundtracks. The piano music that plays during a sad scene or the eerie string music that plays during horror films are all utilized to elicit the preferred response from the movie’s audience.

How Music Affects Mood in Film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEfXv-XxPqA

Beyond just recreational or monetary reasons for manipulating emotions through music, music has also recently been utilized to assist those clinically diagnosed with mental disorders, such as depression or anxiety. A study done in 2017 exploring the effects of musical therapy on different patients. Through their study they found that “music therapy added to treatment as usual (TUA) seems to improve depressive symptoms compared with TAU alone…” (Cochrane Library). In addition they found music therapy in addition to treatment as usual had fewer adverse reactions than just TUA alone and “ shows efficacy in decreasing anxiety levels and improving functioning of depressed individuals” (Cochrane Library). Speaking on a personal level, music can assist, along with other grounding techniques, with breaking me out of a dissociative episode and/or panic attack. There are certain songs that make me feel calm and safe and playing it can give me something to focus on as I try to bring myself back under control.

One of the most obvious, but least noticed effects on music is the social effect it has. Every culture across the world and across time uses and has used music socially at some point. Most commonly you see that in religions, where hymns and songs are often utilized to praise said religion’s god(s). You can also see examples of this on both a state and nationwide scale. The national anthem is sung at the beginning of nearly every sports event in America in order to instil a sense of pride in our nation. One could also look at the abundance and popularity of music festivals, concerts, and recitals happening across the world. I could even find the evidence to argue that music is inherently in our blood. For example, flutes made of bird bones and mammoth ivory were found in Germany and dated back to about 43,000 years ago. Not to mention “some researchers have argued that music may have been one of a suite of behaviours displayed by our species which helped give them an edge over the Neanderthals – who went extinct in most parts of Europe 30,000 years ago” (BBC Science and Environment).

In addition to being long lived and bringing people together, music is also capable of altering social consciousness. Plato once said “Any musical innovation is full of danger to the whole state, and ought to be prohibited. When modes of music change, the fundamental laws of the state always change with them” in response to some of the negative effects music can have on altering social consciousness. While his comment may seem a little extreme, it is certainly true that certain types of music or certain songs seem to have some kind of pulling force behind them. For example, if someone started singing “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond in a public place, more than a few people would respond with the “bum, bum, bum” in chorus. Not to mention the songs that are immediately recognizable within just the first few seconds, for example “Back in Black” by ACDC. One of the greatest examples of this sort of hive mind effect music seems to have on people is the following video which depicts a crowd of around 60,000 people in Lindon, England singing “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen before a Green Day Concert. As you can hear in the video it starts with just a few people then grows to form a haunting chorus line of thousands of people singing in unison.

Crowd of People Singing Bohemian Rhapsody

              https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZnBNuqqz5g

In conclusion, music has managed to permeate every aspect of our society, physical, mental, and social, if it did not already exist there. As someone who has been involved in music since a toddler age, it has certainly always been a habit of mine to recognize the effect music has in our and seek out new ways it can be utilized. Although its use in today’s society is largely recreational, it is incredible to be able to the physical effects it has on our entire being and society. With every avenue of history and life absolutely permeated with music, it could reasonably be said that music is the true lifeblood of humanity.

References:

A. (2018, February 27). The Importance of Music Within Society by Daniel Zambas. Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.raggeduniversity.co.uk/2012/10/12/importance-music-society-daniel-zambas/

American Music Therapy Association (2014, October 16). FACT SHEET: Music Therapy and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Retrieved June 12, 2020 From

file:///C:/Users/Keahey/Downloads/Fact%20Sheet-MT_Autism_2014%20(2).pdf

BBC News. (2012, May 25). Earliest music instruments found. Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-18196349#:%7E:text=Researchers%20have%20identified%20what%20they,by%20modern%20humans%20%2D%20Homo%20sapiens.

[How Does Music Affect the Human Body?]. (2000, April 10). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10863350/#:%7E:text=Research%20has%20shown%20that%20music,influences%20immune%20and%20endocrine%20function.

Music therapy for depression. (2017, November 1). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6486188/#:%7E:text=Music%20therapy%20for%20depression%20is,be%20clarified%20through%20additional%20research.

Pileberg, S. (2015, May 8). The psychological effects of film music. Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://phys.org/news/2015-05-psychological-effects-music.html#:%7E:text=It%20guides%20the%20audience%20in,their%20experience%20of%20the%20film.&text=Music%20can%20work%20in%20powerful,the%20stories%20of%20our%20lives.

The Free Dictionary. (2012). Musical Therapy. Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/%3a