How music affects our brain

HUMANS ARE NOT THE ONLY BEINGS ON THE PLANET, capable of producing melodies, but only we can enjoy and be inspired by them so much (although animals also have prerequisites for this). But why does music play such an important role in our lives? How exactly do we perceive it and how does our brain behave in this case? We have collected ten facts that will help you understand this.

We can be sensitive to rhythm from birth

Scientists have wondered at what age we begin to hear music – not as a set of individual sounds, but as a melody. To do this, they conducted an experiment: measured how the newborn’s brain responds to melodies, including including passages with a disturbed rhythm. It turned out that children react to this “breakdown” – it was seen by changes in brain activity. The study was small, but it suggests that the ability to understand the rhythm of the melody we have from birth. In addition, the fetus can hear different rhythms in the womb – for example, the mother’s heartbeat. Babies can also distinguish the duration and pitch of sounds, which also helps to perceive melodies.

Listening to music does not make children smarter

It is logical that many people wonder what kind of music children should ask – the most popular version shows that it is classical. There is even a so-called Mozart effect – a hypothesis that says that listening to the music of this composer increases IQ. In 1993, scientists conducted the following experiment. Students were divided into three groups: the first was allowed to listen to Mozart’s works, the second – instructions for relaxation, and the third was left in silence. After that, the participants were given a test for spatial thinking – it turned out that the results improved only in those students who listened to Mozart.

What’s wrong with this experiment? As is often the case, the problem is in the mass interpretation: IQ increased by only ten minutes, and there were no long-term changes. It turned out later that the test results improve if a person puts any melody that he likes (be it Mozart, Schubert or even read aloud the work of Stephen King). Favorite music activates the central nervous system, lifts the spirits and invigorates – and that is why the tests are better solved.

Music can increase creativity

So, music will not make us smarter. But how does it affect our thinking? One study involved developers – employees of a very creative specialty. For several weeks they listened to music while working, then worked in silence. Five weeks later, it became clear that working with music, people were more productive and came up with more creative solutions.

Other scientists have found that “happy” music helps us to be creative faster – that is, one where there are more major and solemn notes. In addition, the same mechanism as the Mozart effect may play a role here: raising the mood stimulates creativity.

Music reduces stress

The habit of listening to music to distract yourself has a scientific explanation: it can really reduce stress and regulate mood, especially when you listen to music which has low BPM. Low BPM songs, for example 80 BPM, have calming effect.

There is another explanation – biological. Listening to music has been shown to reduce levels of cortisol, a hormone released during difficult and stressful situations (it doesn’t matter if it’s classical music or pop songs). Listening to music can also help lower blood pressure, heart rate and relax. This fact, for example, is used to reduce patients’ anxiety before surgery.

Music helps to train

Many people listen to music during sports – and do it right. Studies have shown that it enhances endurance and performance during training. One of the reasons music is effective is that it distracts us from fatigue. At the same time, podcasts and audiobooks perform the same function, but do less to facilitate training – so it’s not just about distracting from the load.

Music, especially fast (in the range of 125-140 BPM), increases the mood and motivation for sports. Many athletes listen to music “for the right mood” before serious starts and say that it helps them gain confidence and focus. In addition, the rhythmic features of music help not to reduce the tempo during aerobic exercise – say, running.