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There are people who just can't sit still when they hear music. They may try to stay put, but they just can't. What is going on? Music is art, but it is a different art. It is quite different from paintings, drawings, or sculpture. What is it about musical art that makes us want to move?
Psychologists have looked into this irresistible phenomenon to try to understand what it is and how it works. First, music does not just sit there like other forms of art, it involves time. It has a rhythm and tempo, and is a sequence of events. It is a varying and repeating pattern of sounds across time. It involves sounds organized across time. Music involves the entire brain, not just one or two systems. All at once, emotions, thoughts and physical responses are triggered at the same time. Chemicals in the brain, like endorphins and dopamine, are released and you may feel a wave of sheer happiness and contentment. We may judge music by how it affects us when we listen to it. There are apparently some languages that do not have separate words for dance and music.
Music has parts that together make music. One part is rhythm, which is how sound and periods of silence are arranged over time. The regular repeating patterns of loud and soft sounds in that rhythm is called meter. The rate at which you tap your foot or clap your hands along with the beat has the odd name of tactus. Finally, there is tempo which I believe is the pace of the music. For example, a fast-paced piece of music may be associated with happiness and joy. A much slower piece of music may be associated with being down or sad.
Our memory for certain music can be looked at as part of our autobiography. The music you heard in your growing-up years, those formative years, actually becomes part of your identity. Particularly in the teens and early 20s, the music you heard over and over again became part of your identity and self-concept. Hearing that music years later can trigger memories that have been called autobiographical memory. Fond and pleasant memories, sentimental longing for the past, and a brief escape from the present can be part of the triggered nostalgia. This can occur in patients with dementia, and may be helpful in some cases.
The actions that are triggered by music, the movements that keep up with the beat, are called synchronized movements. The brain naturally and spontaneously translates sounds into movement. Depending on the music, those movements may include marching, dance routines, or any number of triggered actions. Researchers report that even infants can physically and spontaneously react to music. It has also been said that a child's ability to keep up with rhythm is related to developing language skills. The ability to combine what you hear with physical movement is another factor in the rhythm-language relationship.
Most adults are able to synchronize their movements to the beat of the music. Researchers have said that when the arms move away from the side of the body it may be at the same rate or slower as the beat of the music. Movement of the body along with vertical hand movements generally go right along with the beat. A beat that is strong reportedly triggers well-timed regular movements, while a weak or irregular beat may trigger movements that may be described in the same way.
What about our body influences how we react to music? While the body typically synchronizes to the beat of the music, it also responds to whether the beats are strong or weak. Music has an
underlying pattern of strong and weak beats that the brain monitors and continuously tracks. The body movements are then coordinated with that pattern.
The last detail is the concept of Groove. When you are in the groove, what does that mean? The groove apparently is a lot more than tapping your foot along with the beat. The groove reportedly is when you are compelled by the music to really move. You can think of the groove as a compulsion. Psychologists define a compulsion as an irresistible urge to do something. In the music category, the compulsion is to do something physical over and over, even if you want to stop. It is a highly pleasurable compulsive act. The brain is in sync with the music., and it floods the nervous system with delicious neurochemicals like endorphins, dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin. Your mood is elevated and you feel no pain.