There are so many benefits to music that we can enjoy. The science of music is fascinating and can help us be more productive, enjoy music more, and leverage the benefits of music in every area of our life.
Music can soothe the brokenhearted, motivate runners, and kick off the most epic dance parties, but it also has some severe scientific benefits for our health and overall well being. Listening to music has been shown to improve memory functioning, increased rate of healing, improve your workouts, and more.
Hearing music alters the neurochemicals in our brains and triggers the release of dopamine and endorphins. These neurotransmitters boost our mood and allow us to share that positive chemical rush with the people we are with.
Several studies observing indigenous people who use music in their community gatherings found that listening to music together strengthens the bonds in groups by making people feel like they belong, increasing people’s positive perceptions of the people they are sharing the experience with.
Another part of the power of music comes from the way the beat synchronizes people–even if it’s just a slight sway, tapping of your foot, or nodding of your head, moving in sync with other people makes you in tune with them.
Patients with memory loss can often remember songs and specific song lyrics. Doctors will often use music and lyric recall to help individuals retrieve lost memories. Certain music can trigger particularly unique memories- music from a specific period will trigger memories from that period.
Music and its effect on memory have been a heated debate in the scientific world, but researchers now have evidence that the processing of music and language, explicitly memorizing information, rely on some of the same brain systems. Researchers have also uncovered evidence that suggests the music we heard as teenagers has a more excellent emotional bond to our brain than anything we’ll listen to as adults.