Music has always served as
source of amusement, a source of positive energy among a mass of people. It has
the reputation of bringing people close from varied backgrounds. The concept of
neurogamy-the copulation of various different types of actual nervous systems.
The most fascinating fact about music is that it is not limited to a single
type. Till date, there are over 150 identified genres of music. The mystery
behind music, its enigma, its physiological and psychological effects have
remained as one of the most salivating topic of research among psychiatrists
and neurobiologists. A noted music philosopher once said that we listen to
music with our muscles. The statement is evident from the fact that we tap our
feet, we sing along, we hum, our facial expressions change with the changes in
melody and there is rise and fall in our emotions as we listen to music. With
the recent advent in trance music, it is often thought to be quite modern;
indeed it has belonged under the umbrella of music as a separate entity for
long time. Trance is defined as ecstatic singing and dancing which involves
cries and jumping and catatonic like immobility involving both motor and gross
emotional, psychic and autonomic event.
In a more detailed aspect, studies
reveal that music brings in a state of musical imagery. Famous neurobiologist
Oliver Sacks termed the condition as brainworm- which is a repeating loop of
music that recurs from a few seconds to a few days. The main reason behind this
consequence is because of the strain to which our sensitive auditory system is
exposed to. These brainworms were said to be a result of sensory overstimulation
also. Have you ever wondered why do you remember music so much? The answer to
this question was given by Kraemar, who found that imagining music activated
our auditory cortex in the temporal lobe. Surprisingly, human beings are able
to recall a segment from music imagery much more than visual imagery and it is
also more reliable because musical imagery cannot be replaced by our minds
unlike visual imageries. General biology says that the right cerebral
hemisphere is responsible for the creative aspect of a person. It specially
deals with art, literature, music and this was proved by an experiment by
Zatorre, who examined patients with damaged right cerebral hemisphere and found
that they have serious problems with perceptions of musical imagery, rhythm recognition
and pitch judgement. However patients with lesions in the left cerebral
hemisphere did not have much problem in completing the tasks. Although in
general, humans do not possess a specific music “center” in their brain. It is
programmed in such a way that we enjoy its reception from various parts which
changes from person to person.
Various neurological disorders like
Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and Tourette’s syndrome have been long thought to be
treated with musical therapy. Considerable amount of positive responses in
patients suffering from such diseases have just aggravated the real time
possibility of such a therapy. Since we turn to music to because of its ability
to move us, to evoke emotions, and induce feelings and moods, similar principle
is applied during clinical trials of the musical therapy. It is known that
Parkinson’s patients whose movements can be easily immobilized or frozen can be
regained when they are exposed to regular rhythm and tempo. Patients suffering
from Alzheimer’s also have profound effect on being exposed to music and those
emotions are often exposed to which they have had familiar experiences and call
up events that cannot be recalled in any other way.
In the current times research shows
that people spend 14% of the day, listening to music which is equivalent to the
time spending reading books or watching television. An intricate relationship
between music and personalities has been an interesting point of discussion
among psychologists. They believe that people tend to choose music consistent
with their personalities. Cattell was the first among many to relate between
music and personality and said that since it evokes the deeper levels of
unconscious, therefore study of music preferences revealed deeper secrets to personality.
Studies revealed that people who
generally prefer loud, arousing music which is fast and fall under the category
of heavy rock music generally are sensation seekers. They indulge in new
experiences with a considerable amount of risk both physically and mentally.
People who are generally fond of adventures and thrills do prefer a wide range
of music chiefly ranging from rock to classical. People who have higher
tendencies of disinhibition- state defined by weak assessment of risk and
social conventions due to loss in orientation and cognitive behavior, also
prefer rock music and has a significant dislike for religious soundtracks.
Psychologists studied the relationship between, the 5 factor model of
personality and music preferences. It was found that people who had high scores
in openness took pleasure in cultural and aesthetic experiences are more
inclined towards jazz, classical and blues and also on less conventional
soundtracks.
Extraversion, another criterion of
the 5-factor model also revealed that they are also inclined towards blues and
jazz but to a lesser degree as compared people who are open. A facet called
excitement under the extraversion criterion says that people with high scores
on this facet generally prefer rock music. One can also differentiate between
an introvert and extrovert on the basis of the music. Introverts are more
attracted towards music with a formal structure, which is intellectual and
restrained. Introverts give time to their music and are willing to understand it
to a deeper level. Extroverts generally prefer music which does not need much
cognitive involvement or emotional attachment. People with high levels of
Neuroticism, defined as the experience of negative emotions from time to time
is generally more inclined towards conventional popular music. They manifest
the thought of being socially outcast henceforth.
So to all those people who believe
they are an expert in music, beware of the fact that even this reveals a lot
more than expected and makes people judgmental. Even in general conversations,
the taste of music reveals a lot about the personality which can often play a
role in helping individuals come up in an unknown group of people and make
friends with people having similar tastes. The mystery behind the complete
psychological aspect is still huge and everyone knows that the subconscious is
still to be fully discovered. Music at a deeper level only help ourselves to
discover who we really are in our subconscious.
Debanjan Kundu
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