Please note: this Brain and Music Blog has moved! Our new address is www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com/brain_blog See you there!

Saturday, July 15, 2006

Why are musical memories so powerful?

There is considerable research showing that the music we listen to in our "courting years" is the music that means the most to us in our last few decades of life. Think about it...what did you listen to when you were in high school? Was it the Platters, the Beatles, the Carpenters, Madonna, Cindy Lauper??? It seems that every generation thinks that the music from their courting years is the best. Why? Could it be that when we're "falling in love" in our teen years, the power neurochemicals released in our brains imprint the music in an indelible way?

Think about it...go back in time and let me know what you think!

Alice

www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com
www.SurgicalSerenitySolutions.com

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Music and the EEG

Did you know that you have electricity in your body and your brain? This is not a theory, it's a fact! One of the most important medical tests that exists to diagnose brain problems is the EEG.

Music and the EEG
There have not been many experiments that have looked to see how the brain processes music. Measurements of brain activity using the electroencephalogram (EEG) have shown that both the right and left hemispheres are responsive to music.

Other researchers have recorded neuronal activity from the temporal lobe of patients undergoing brain surgery for epilepsy. During this study, awake patients heard either a song by Mozart, a folk song or the theme from "Miami Vice". These different kinds of music had different effects on the neurons in the temporal lobe. The Mozart song and folk song reduced the activity in 48% of the neurons while the theme from Miami Vice reduced the activity in only 26% of the neurons. Also the Miami Vice music increased the activity in 74% of the neurons while Mozart and folk music increase the activity in only about 20% of the neurons. Some of the neurons had action potentials that kept time with the rhythm of the music. Although these results do show that the temporal lobe is probably involved with some aspect of music, it is unclear exactly how this area of the brain is used in the appreciation of music.
You can read about this and more at http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/music.html#eeg

Comments and questions welcomed! My website is www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com

Welcome to the Brain and Music!

Scientific research is teaching us more every day about our brains. As a musician and a therapist, the most exciting thing for me is how music affects our brain. It would seem that sometimes music can even heal the brain.

With an increase in diagnoses such as ADD, ADHD, autism and behavior disorders, it is exciting to see that music can be a powerful, non-addictive, non-invasive intervention.

Over the next many months and years, I hope you will post to this blog and tell me your own stories about music and the brain.

See you online!

Dr. Alice H. Cash, LCSW
www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com