Monthly Archives: September 2017
Musically gifted brain
Just as short-term learning increases the number of neurons that respond to sound, long-term learning increases the responses of nerve cells and even causes physical changes in the brain. Brain reactions of professional musicians differ significantly from those of non-musicians, and some areas of their brain are over-developed.
In 1998, Christo Pantev (Christo Pantev) from the University of münster in Germany showed that when musicians listen to piano playing, the area of auditory zones reacting to music, they have 25% more than non-musicians. Studies of children also confirm the assumption that early musical experience facilitates the “musical” development of the brain. In 2004 Antoine Shahin (Shahin Antoine), Larry Roberts (Larry E. Roberts) and Laurel Trainor (Laurel J. Trainor) from McMaster University in Ontario recorded the reaction of the brain 4-5 year old children to the sounds of piano, violin and pure tones. Continue reading
What is the secret of the mesmerizing power of music
Music is all around us. At the sound of a powerful orchestral crescendo, tears come to my eyes and goosebumps run down my back. The musical accompaniment enhances the artistic expressiveness of films and performances. Rock musicians make us jump to our feet and dance, and parents lullabies quiet kids songs.
The love for music has deep roots: people compose and listen to her since the very beginning of the culture. More than 30 thousand years ago our ancestors already played stone flutes and bone harps. It seems that this hobby has an innate nature. Babies turn to the source of pleasant sounds (consonances) and turn away from unpleasant (dissonances). And when we experience awe at the final sounds of the Symphony, the same pleasure centers are activated in the brain as during a delicious meal, sex or taking drugs. Continue reading
