The Magic of Music

Personally, I am fascinated by art. I consider music to be an art form. Music is a form of entertainment and it kept our ancestors entertained for decades. Music comes in various forms such as instrumentals, vocals, and a combination of both. In this day and age, recording artists, beat producers, and musicians can make a career out of making music. The power of music is so revolutionary because it has healing powers. Music therapy exists and a person who plays an instrument will be able to learn other material with ease, this concept also applies to people who learn a new language. Music in itself is a language, whether it's notes written on paper, a composition, or simply lyrics sung into the air, people receive and send messages using music. I could go on for days discussing music and all of its complexity, but I would like to point out, from experience, why music can be so impactful. 

I'd like to start by pointing out that music, a particular song perhaps, can encapsulate a moment and can be attached to a memory. Has anyone noticed that when a certain song is played and you remember that song, you immediately remember where you heard it and what was going on during that time? It's as if the song was literally attached to that scenario and now by listening to it, you are reliving it. This can be a good or bad thing because not all memories are pleasant, but the nostalgia factor still kicks in. Conduct an experiment during your time at home in which you find a quiet place to sit down and put headphones on. Close your eyes and play a song you haven't heard in a while, what does it make you think of? The song or album is a memory in itself because it represents a certain time period in your life. Take for example a middle school girl who listens to Katy Perry, when she grows up and goes to college, she switches her music taste and now listens to Halsey. If that girl were to hear a Katy Perry song on Apple Music or at an amusement park, then she would recall her middle school time period. What's funny is that most of the time, people are embarrassed by their old music tastes, their cringe-worthy playlists. Why might this be the case? I believe that as a person gets older, they develop and grow a better awareness of the world around them. This would explain why we can't remember every detail of our childhood, but we remember the Halloween party from two years ago where we got kicked out before 11pm because we kept dropping beers. Our music taste from the past defines who we were. At a certain period of time, this was what you liked, this was your musical interest. 

Another fascinating concept is the realization that music can be empowering. Several different genres and music styles exist and we tend to match them to our feelings because the songs express or encourage how we feel at that particular moment. A person who is feeling depressed after a breakup will either listen to depressing music because they feel it tells their story or in a rare case listen to encouraging music in order to counteract their feeling of despair. A person who is about to go into a workout will listen to music to get them pumped up, in another rare case, they will listen to Mozart. It's as if our minds are hardwired to match our emotions with music and music happens to have the power to affect people's emotions. We have the power to change or encourage people's emotions through the use of music. It's incredible! 

So enjoy it 

And don't be afraid to throw on that Katy Perry once in a while 

Your past may not have been as bad as you thought...

Expressed by: Oscar Mendieta