The Power of Music

Since the dawn of time, it is highly possible that the creature known as homo habilis may have learned to pass the time while skinning their kills trying to mimic many of the sounds around them as a way of developing a base language in which to communicate with the others rather than simply pointing and grunting. Since the electronic world was far and away from their time in history, they had to make do with the sounds that nature provided. Very little is known of their language skills and even whether or not they were hunters or scavengers, yet I can bet that many of the ancient people were fascinated by the melodic sounds of the birds around them as a result, humming may have been invented.

The earliest documented form of music was found back in the 1950’s by French archeologist in the ancient city of Ugarit (present day city of Ras Shamra in Syria) in the form of stone tablets, later to be decoded as a harmonic scale of some sort very similar to our diatonic major “do, re, mi” scale. This 3,500 year old “blast from the past” has been said to be one of the major foundations for western music as we know it today. To hear this hip tune, click here.

WeÂ’ve come a long way since Mesopotamia and so has our musical taste. Not only did that kingdom give humans its first working alphabet, it also gave us a way to immortalize our music so that others may hear it, too. From stone tablets written in cuneiform to present day digital recording, music to this day remains as much an intrinsic part of the human spirit as are our beings.

For music having existed for thousands of years, one can only wonder at the power contained within the tones themselves. Even today, more and more physicians are swearing by the effects that music can have upon a human body. Whether to relive the stress of life with soft melodies or to inject adrenaline into the bloodstream with heavy metal, music has been scientifically proven to alter not only the physical properties of the human body but the mental state as well through sound alone. Was it not William Congreve who penned in The Mourning Bride (Act I, Scene I), “Music hath charms to soothe a savage breast, To soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak."?

What a powerful thing music can be! It can make you laugh, it can make you cry, it can make you dance, and it can make you sedate. Music itself lacks the properties of the physical world yet it has been known to inspire people to do a many great things in their lives so much so that the music itself takes on its own life beat. It is a passionate art that has shaped our history in ways we cannot measure.

Remember how those 70’s rock bands on the radio “got your blood to pumping” while you were cruising down the highway? Or how more intense the love-making became with Mr. Barry White on the CD player? Better yet, the tears your country’s national anthem brought to your eyes in times of sorrow and tragedy?

So today, IÂ’d like for you to think of that one song that fills your soul and inspires your mind, that moves you emotionally and mentally, to do something positive today. Hum it on your way to work or hit the repeat button on your CD player at home at the end of the day, let it be your muse, your guide. Be inspired.

Take care out there this week,

Rob

P.S.

To provide an extemporaneous example of how pleasurable tones can be, did you know that all the slot machines in Las Vegas have their sounds programmed in the key of C? Studies have shown it to be the most pleasing key to the human ear; hence, the popularity of the one-arm bandit. Just a little side trivia for the day.

Quote: Originally Posted by Rob To provide an extemporaneous example of how pleasurable tones can be, did you know that all the slot machines in Las Vegas have their sounds programmed in the key of C? Studies have shown it to be the most pleasing key to the human ear; hence, the popularity of the one-arm bandit. Just a little side trivia for the day.

My own privately funded study showed that a good lookin' blonde blackjack dealer is far more popular to me than any one armed bandit.

Quote: Originally Posted by Rob To provide an extemporaneous example of how pleasurable tones can be, did you know that all the slot machines in Las Vegas have their sounds programmed in the key of C? Studies have shown it to be the most pleasing key to the human ear; hence, the popularity of the one-arm bandit. Just a little side trivia for the day.

Did you get that from CSI?

Edit: They must have stolen it from you then .

Quote: Originally Posted by Ryj Did you get that from CSI?

Nope. Used to work at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino on South Las Vegas Blvd a few years ago.

Rob

You know the funny thing about music? If a song is playing when a certain event occurs likea car accident or someone getting killed, each time you hear that song you remember the events that took place while that song was playing?

I remember the song that was playing when my then girlfriend broke up with me, it was Mikael Fyrek "A dream I never had" It was so beautiful yet so damn saddening and each time I hear it I think of her.

Awesome post

I've always associated music with emotion, and to this day there are songs/compositions that still evoke the emotions that i experienced years ago when i first heard them.

When i finally have enough collegiate experience under my belt to begin doing clinical research, one of the topics that's high on my "I'd really like to do this" list is a study of how music effects an individual's state of consciousness. Of particular interest to me are individuals who play instruments.

I guess what really piqued my curiosity on this specific subject are my own experiences playing didgeridoo (in the case of the didge, any consciousness altering effects are most likely a combination of mild oxygen deprivation - the effect of prolonged circular breathing- as well as the rhythmic drone of the instrument's key note).
Ah, i digress. Thanks for another thought provoking/ inspiring thread: they are most certainly appreciated

Quote: Originally Posted by droeblek9 one of the topics that's high on my "I'd really like to do this" list is a study of how music effects an individual's state of consciousness. Of particular interest to me are individuals who play instruments.

One of the best ways to observe this phenomina is from the "stage".
Whether DJing or playing an instrument, I have been performing or playing music since I was in 4th grade in the late 70s. Throughout that time I have played in concert bands, jazz bands, Drum & Bugle Corps, independant persussion ensembles, a Symphony Orchestra (as a substitute for 2 months), and yes.... even a country band.
If you can beat it with a stick, I can play it (awaits slew of lewd jokes).
Of course, being a percussionist, the easiest part of DJing for me to pick up was the beatmatching.
Learning to program, blend, cut, and mix journies rather than just songs takes much longer and is a neverending journey in itself. I learn something new almost every time I get behind the decks.

In short, I thoroughly believe in the healing power of music and dance. I almost always feel at least 5-10 years younger after performing for a crowd and seeing the smiles on their faces.
Great post Rob!

Quote: Originally Posted by j-dogg You know the funny thing about music? If a song is playing when a certain event occurs likea car accident or someone getting killed, each time you hear that song you remember the events that took place while that song was playing? I remember the song that was playing when my then girlfriend broke up with me, it was Mikael Fyrek "A dream I never had" It was so beautiful yet so damn saddening and each time I hear it I think of her.

Thats actually the whole mechanism behind memory period. Thats how our memory works, by association.


Droe, I think the answers to your study are already there, within the music itself. The music a musician creates is a reflection of their state of conciousness/emotion while playing their instrument, well, until the POP artist came along that writes stuff for the hell of it, but I guess the same could be said there also to a degree.

outstanding subject Rob...

I do belive that music, all music is the language that our souls use. expression, comunication, event waypoints.
It reaches that innermost part of our being.

Having a bit of musical upbringing, I have been one to not hear the lyrics as much as the instumental part.

Not that there arn't excellent lyrics out there, I just prefer the journey that raw music can take you to.

Quote: Originally Posted by ZENNZZO outstanding subject Rob... I do belive that music, all music is the language that our souls use. expression, comunication, event waypoints. It reaches that innermost part of our being. Having a bit of musical upbringing, I have been one to not hear the lyrics as much as the instumental part. Not that there arn't excellent lyrics out there, I just prefer the journey that raw music can take you to.

Alright, someone that will agree with me on the LYRICS SUCK issue. Music is music and will be music with or without lyrics, best without. Lyrics do have their place in Rap music as thats what rappers use to portray their state of being, but I find NO "musical" quality to Rap at all.

Speaking of musicians.......here's a few jokes.


How do you get the bass player to stop knocking on your door?

Pay him for the pizza.


What do you call a guy who hangs out with musicians?

A drummer.


How can you tell the stage is lopsided?

When the drool runs out the side of the drummer's mouth while he's playing.


What do you say to the bass player in the three piece suit?

"Will the defendant please rise?"


For more bass player jokes, click here!


Rob

Edit:

Guess I really should have replied on-topic in my own thread, but I got carried away.

While I think that the lyrics are not the most important part of a song, I do think that there are some songs out there that just would not have made it without it. Sometimes the lyrics are so much a part of the song that actually becomes what the music is about.

Just a few minor examples...

Led Zepplin - Stairway to Heaven

Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

Otis Redding - Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay

Overall, I like to listen to the music rather than the lyrics.

Rob

Ditto, Rob.

When i listen to music, the vocals (if there are any) are somewhat akin to another instrument being thrown into the mix. If i really wnat to get a rational grasp (for the most part ) on what's being said, i actually need to turn off the music and read the lyrics. One exception, though...really sh1tty lyrics seem to jump to the foreground...go figure

Luna: I agree, but i'm after more. I want to start exploring ways to empirically measure states of consciousness, and (hopefully) gain a better insight into what they actually are

I agree with Droe as far as lyrics go. They're also something to sing along to, but I'm never one for poetry.

What's always bugged me is why music is such an intensely emotional medium. Why can't a painting move us the same way, or even a hamburger?

I had a hamburger move me once, but that was Food Poisoning.

As for lyrics, if the singer is good, for me it becomes another instrument, that justs adds more to the music. If it tells a story, or has a point. Late 60's early 70's rock, very political, very moving, they molded a generation. So I'd have to disagree, lyrics has its place.

If it didn't wouldn't we all wind up loving Elevator music???

Quote: Originally Posted by _Sexy_Pants_ What's always bugged me is why music is such an intensely emotional medium. Why can't a painting move us the same way, or even a hamburger?

They can if you let them.
Music has (at least in the 20th century) always been associated with entertainment and relaxation.
You can train yourself to be responsive to other methods of relaxation as well. Suppose if every time you were completely relaxed (granted this may be hard for some) you ate a hamburger. Eventually, over the course of time if you do it enough, the mere sight of a hamburger could be enough to relax you.
Throughout the process of growing up, we as humans tend to take everyday objects for granted and no longer view them as we did at a younger age. Think about how often you see a look of pure wonder on an adult's face as compared to that of a child. I, for one, am extremely jealous of children for that reason alone.
As far as lyrics are concerned, some songs wouldn't be much without them. Think of all the Bob Dylan songs out there that are downright plain in comparison to other music of the era, yet the lyrics inspire some to great lengths.

Quote: Originally Posted by godfoot You can train yourself to be responsive to other methods of relaxation as well.

That's why I like strippers...

Quote: Originally Posted by godfoot Think of all the Bob Dylan songs out there that are downright plain in comparison to other music of the era, yet the lyrics inspire some to great lengths.

You can understand what Bob Dylan is talking about???

Anyway, you've got some great points there, GF. It's all about the moving power of music.

Rob

Quote: Originally Posted by Rob You can understand what Bob Dylan is talking about???

Oh yes!
There is a passage in one of his songs (I'll let interested parties do their own research) that has stuck with me since the first time I heard it:

"Disillusioned words like bullets bark
As human gods aim for their mark
Made everything from toy guns that spark
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark
It's easy to see without looking too far
That not much is really sacred. "

Quote: Originally Posted by godfoot Oh yes! There is a passage in one of his songs (I'll let interested parties do their own research) that has stuck with me since the first time I heard it: "Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Made everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It's easy to see without looking too far That not much is really sacred. "

Oh, so that's what he was saying. I thought he was ordering french fries at McDonalds or something.



Hey, I shouldn't rag on Dylan...after all, he did get to jam with the Pope a while back. I won't deny his influence (and longevity) in the music industry has had a positive effect on his fellow musicians.

Rob

Thought that I would add this on....posted on Reuters today.

Quote: Originally Posted by Reuters Science - Reuters Ice-Age Ivory Flute Found in German Cave Fri Dec 10, 1:02 PM ET BERLIN (Reuters) - A 35,000-year-old flute made from a woolly mammoth's ivory tusk has been unearthed in a German cave by archaeologists, the University of Tuebingen said on Friday. The flute, one of the oldest musical instruments discovered, was pieced together from 31 fragments found in a cave in the Swabian mountains in southwestern Germany, the university said. The mountains have yielded rich pickings in recent years, including ivory figurines, ornaments and other musical instruments. Archaeologists believe humans camped in the area in winter and spring. Mammoths, now extinct, were large elephant-like creatures with hairy coats and long, upcurved tusks. They lived during the Pleistocene period from 2 million to 11,000 years ago. The university said it planned to put the instrument on display in a museum in Stuttgart.