Smooth operators, if the groove's right
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Conrad Walters
August 25, 2007
NEED musical accompaniment for the day's dusting? Crank up AC/DC's Back in Black. Then some songs for an aerobic workout? Choose Avril Lavigne or the Village People. And finally, something to induce a recuperative nap? Try Peter, Paul and Mary's greatest hits.
The advice emerges from a study that looked inside the brain to understand not only our emotional responses to music but also to explore the physiological reasons for why different types of music suit different activities.
Although the research, from McGill University in Montreal, stressed personal preferences govern the matching of specific tunes and tasks, it identified broad styles for various activities.
The researchers found household chores seem less mundane while listening to music with an energetic beat that can engage the brain. Low-tempo instrumental music suited studying because it doesn't interfere with the brain's ability to comprehend what is being read. For exercise, up-tempo music with a driving beat helps the body synchronise repetitive movements. And for relaxing, the brain was lulled most by music with a slow, even tempo.
The Canadian study said tailoring music to activities can help people maintain their peak mental and physical capacity, noting it was common for surgeons to "perform their most concentration-intensive procedures" while listening to music. Far from adding to the chaos, music improved their abilities.
At Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Dr Anthony Eyers plays music to help provide a conducive environment in the operating theatre.
"You want music that's non-confrontational," said Dr Eyers, who is head of the hospital's Department of Colorectal Surgery and a Rolf Harris enthusiast. "You've got to keep out of the more heavy metal or intrusive music."
Dr Eyers, whose surgery favourites include the wobbleboard master's version of Stairway to Heaven, said he has a large collection of music specifically for operating.
"It's played in the background for people to concentrate on," he said. "Obviously, it's got to be played at a level where it's background and doesn't interfere, so we're not hitting the operating theatre with big-time audio," he said.
The leader of the Life Soundtracks study, music and psychology professor Daniel Levitin, said researchers used brain scans to match moods and music. The findings confirmed what successive generations of parents have long suspected: a link exists between sex, drugs and rock'n'roll.
"We performed studies using brain-scanning technology to show the reward portions of the brain - areas that respond to things like sex and drugs - also respond to music," he said. "If you can find the right music that you like, it can create a natural high in the way these other things do."
Professor Levitin, whose work was commissioned by the research arm of the electronics company Philips, said many people already used music to regulate moods, much as caffeine kickstarts some people in the morning and a drink relaxes them after work.
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Conrad Walters
August 25, 2007
NEED musical accompaniment for the day's dusting? Crank up AC/DC's Back in Black. Then some songs for an aerobic workout? Choose Avril Lavigne or the Village People. And finally, something to induce a recuperative nap? Try Peter, Paul and Mary's greatest hits.
The advice emerges from a study that looked inside the brain to understand not only our emotional responses to music but also to explore the physiological reasons for why different types of music suit different activities.
Although the research, from McGill University in Montreal, stressed personal preferences govern the matching of specific tunes and tasks, it identified broad styles for various activities.
The researchers found household chores seem less mundane while listening to music with an energetic beat that can engage the brain. Low-tempo instrumental music suited studying because it doesn't interfere with the brain's ability to comprehend what is being read. For exercise, up-tempo music with a driving beat helps the body synchronise repetitive movements. And for relaxing, the brain was lulled most by music with a slow, even tempo.
The Canadian study said tailoring music to activities can help people maintain their peak mental and physical capacity, noting it was common for surgeons to "perform their most concentration-intensive procedures" while listening to music. Far from adding to the chaos, music improved their abilities.
At Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Dr Anthony Eyers plays music to help provide a conducive environment in the operating theatre.
"You want music that's non-confrontational," said Dr Eyers, who is head of the hospital's Department of Colorectal Surgery and a Rolf Harris enthusiast. "You've got to keep out of the more heavy metal or intrusive music."
Dr Eyers, whose surgery favourites include the wobbleboard master's version of Stairway to Heaven, said he has a large collection of music specifically for operating.
"It's played in the background for people to concentrate on," he said. "Obviously, it's got to be played at a level where it's background and doesn't interfere, so we're not hitting the operating theatre with big-time audio," he said.
The leader of the Life Soundtracks study, music and psychology professor Daniel Levitin, said researchers used brain scans to match moods and music. The findings confirmed what successive generations of parents have long suspected: a link exists between sex, drugs and rock'n'roll.
"We performed studies using brain-scanning technology to show the reward portions of the brain - areas that respond to things like sex and drugs - also respond to music," he said. "If you can find the right music that you like, it can create a natural high in the way these other things do."
Professor Levitin, whose work was commissioned by the research arm of the electronics company Philips, said many people already used music to regulate moods, much as caffeine kickstarts some people in the morning and a drink relaxes them after work.
I can't stand her voice.
