By: Kara Haselton

People enjoy music.

Does that come as a surprise? Probably not.

Our culture is completely smitten with music. One virtually listens to music every second of the day; it’s widespread and well-received. Music controls a huge part about what makes a culture that culture, what makes an era that era, what makes a person that person.

Jazz is often paired with the swinging time of the 1920’s and ‘40’s.

People think the Beatles when they hear the ‘60’s.

‘90’s rock is a genre within itself because all the music produced during that time period was roughly the same.

One amazing aspect music presents is how it brings humanity together. Hoards of thousands of people fill a room to an uncomfortable amount, enthusiastic about violating the personal space of strangers, just to see and hear their favorite artist perform. The average teen actively follows their favorite singer’s personal life. A shocking majority of our culture  is influenced by music.

But what is it about music that makes it so endearing?

Music is a drug.

It can be used as a type of therapy to calm nerves, help mental disorders, and even improve concentration and learning.

Music is a health thing. In the way that you need fruits and veggies to keep you physically healthy, you also need music to be mentally and emotionally healthy.

Various studies have been done to discover exactly how music affects our brains, and all of them come to the same conclusion:

Musicians run the world.

That might be a slight exaggeration; however, don’t underestimate how powerful it can be to not only listen to music, but also make music. Biologically speaking, the brain of a musician is noticeably different than an average person’s. BeBrainFit.com states that the “areas of the brain responsible for motor control, auditory processing, and spatial coordination are larger [than average]. They also have a larger corpus callosum.”

So essentially, when musicians play or make music, they use multiple areas of their brain at the same time. Not specifically the right or left side, but actually both hemispheres are used to a greater amount when playing music than almost any other activity. Music enables the brain to communicate to all sections of the brain, as well as use a lot more of the brain’s full potential.

But wait! The effects don’t stop just at the biological! The way music affects our mood and productivity is even more widely known and appreciated. It’s common knowledge that music, such as classical or ambient music, increases concentration and memory. However, music can contribute to learning a lot more than most people realize. It can improve language, spatial intelligence (the ability to work with and understand 3D shapes, i.e. puzzle and problem solving, engineering, etc.), and it can even help improve test scores.

The emotional affect of music is by far the most appreciated. Just the right song can help reduce stress, calm you down, pump you up, or channel your anger.

BeBrainFit.com also states that, “listening to music at work can make you a happier, more productive employee, especially if it’s music you’ve chosen.” It’s pretty obvious, from many personal experiences, that a favorite song can have a very positive effect. But its significance exceeds common knowledge.  

Music runs the world.

Music makes us feel some type of way.

It’s obvious that humanity loves and yearns for music, but the reason of why makes it even more beautiful.