Many scientists write
off music as auditory sensory adaption stemming from human evolution, but musician
and psychologist Denial Levitin theorizes in his book, This is Your Brain on Music, that music is partially a tool used
for attraction. Thinking in a purely psychosexual standpoint, if a person has
enough time and intelligence to master the art of music they prove to also have
enough to raise a family. It makes sense. Just think about all the love songs that
play on the radio.
Music is seen as a form
of communication, yet individuals react differently to various genres. Levitin explains that the brain’s neural
networks of perception are closed off after adolescence. So if you enjoyed rock
music growing up, you will most likely continue listening to similar genres as
you age. The same would be for any type of music. Unless you continuously seek
out diverse genres in your lifetime the brain’s perception of music hits a
roadblock.
There is something about that reasoning I don’t find justifying. Maybe
it’s my underlying desire to find out why classical music is less popular than
rap, for example. Humans are wired to look for patterns and relationships in
everyday living which, I feel, plays a large role in musical perception. Much
like coffee or anchovies, classical music is an acquired taste. Popular modern
music tends to have much repetition: whether it is lyrics, harmony, and/or rhythm.
It’s hard to find a song on the radio that even remotely changes in volume.
People are comfortable with music that has no surprises. It’s predictable. Contemporary
music is so structured and simplified; it’s left with little to no room for
interpretation. Classical music is slightly different. It relies mostly on the effect
of tension and resolution. Like a movie, it keeps the listener wondering what’s
going to happen next. It takes a while to become used to the uncertainty and obscurity
of classical music. This could be why it’s so much harder to write.
Absolutely wonderful post, Jordan. My favorite part is when you talk about contemporary and classical music. I recently have been listening to a lot of classical music while studying because I need some kind of background noise and I have heard it's good for you. I definitely agree that it is an acquired taste, but the more I listen to it the more I like it. I even have some favorites, now. I do wonder why more people do not give it a chance, especially because, like you said, contemporary music is predictable and repetitive.
ReplyDeleteI have always wondered why some people like one kind of music and others do not, so this small article was quite interesting. It also made me want to read the book. Great post.
Excellent post, Jordan. This post really got me thinking about the differences between genres of music and how they compare. A few critiques about this article would be that your opening sentence was a little long. Also, it is difficult to understand the focus of this post, whether it should about the book or just the topic itself. Finally, I believe that you left the topic about mastering the art of music and its relation with raising a family a little under nourished, and I would love to hear more of your thoughts on the subject.
ReplyDeleteOver all this was an excellent post and I hope you will follow up on it. Next time, instead of rap and classical, you could compare rock or heavy metal to classical. Food for thought.
I was wondering if your book had anything to say about the subjectivity of music and people?
ReplyDeleteAnother question that I have for your book would be what kind of research or study did he do to find the connection of having "enough time and intelligence to master the art of music [then]they prove to also have enough to raise a family."?
Thank you, Sam! I've noticed more students our age are turning to classical music to study or sleep to. It's a great way to clear the mind. I think people would enjoy it more if they actually listened to it for a while.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the feedback, Kevin! I agree. Some of my sentences can get pretty long, but I like to vary sentence length to throw in some contrast. I didn't want to just talk about the book, because I already did a review. I guess I wanted to show other theories than to what the book presented. I would have gone into more detail if I had a longer word limit. I wanted to show a contrast with the types of genres, and I thought rap, rock, and classical were all very different.
Shaina, the I would argue the whole book is surrounded around how and why music affects people. I don't think that statement is research as much as philosophy. Music is found in every culture around the world since the beginning of our existence. It's the human mating call, like birds. It seems to work, since there are psychological tests that shows the relationship between attraction and music.