Our Musical Minds
“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and cannot remain silent”
-Victor Hugo
The world loves music; and why not? It is everywhere. We hear it in grocery stores, on the internet, on the radio, and even in shopping mall outlets. The Apple Company has sold over 1 million iPods and created more than 4,000 iPod accessories (Apple). More than 70 percent of all 2007-model U.S automobiles offer iPod connectivity, and Microsoft has introduced Sync, a fully integrated, in-car communication and entertainment system that allows you to listen to your music with voice activation. Why do we love music? What is it that makes us listen to it all the time?
Music has the power to bring out our emotions. These feelings are fascinating - often irresistible - and seem to come out of nowhere. These feelings paint our moods, mold our personality, affect our perceptions and create our lifestyles the absolute fact about music is its power to stir up sensation.
Human beings are an emotional species. We have a wide range of emotions that can go from happy one minute to sad or angry in the space of a few seconds. Music is the same way and has sounds that can seem cheery, as well as angry. Because of these coincidences music has the ability to express emotion as well as change the emotion of the listener.
Have you ever been sad and turned to music? Or maybe you have been angry and frustrated when you turned to music. Your mood (or current emotional state) can greatly influence your choice of music you want to listen to. For instance, when you’re sad or melancholy, you might play something that is soft, slow and possibly a little mournful. Whereas, when you are angry you might play something that is loud and has a fast temp. The choice of music you play will complement how you feel at that current moment.
In the same way that our emotions can determine what we listen to, music can change how we feel. In your normal day to day activities, you might...