The eighth in a series.
You can only imagine how fatigued and grumpy PAN used to
feel after a busy day of chasing nymphs all around the Greek countryside,
typically with little success. We have to wonder if the music of his pan pipes
soothed the savage beast…or, in his case, beasts.
There is a growing body of thought that music can and does
improve the health and mood of people. Consider the following:
A group of neuroscientists determined in a 2010 study
that music, as defined as “an abstract stimulus,” can arouse feelings of
euphoria and craving, similar to tangible rewards that involve the striatal
dopaminergic system.
This happens during anticipation and experience of peak
emotional responses to music, according MRI readings. Their conclusion: “Our results
help to explain why music is of such high value across all human societies.”
New research shows that even sad music can lift a person’s
mood, while other studies suggest music can boost happiness and reduce anxiety.
Recent research conducted by Durham University in the UK and the
University of Jyväskylä in Finland, published in PLOS ONE produced this conclusion.
The research involved three waves of surveys
with more than 2400 people in the UK and Finland. It focused on the emotions
and memorable experiences associated with listening to sad songs. The majority of experiences reported by participants were
positive.
"The results help us to pinpoint the ways people regulate their mood with the help of music, as well as how music rehabilitation and music therapy might tap into these processes of comfort, relief, and enjoyment" said lead author Tuomas Eerolas, Ph.D. a professor of music cognition at Durham university in a press release.
Other research has focused on the joys that upbeat music can bring. A 2013 study in the Journal of Positive Psychology found that people who listened regularly to upbeat music could improve their moods and boost their happiness in just two weeks.
In the study, participants were instructed to try to improve their mood with music, but they only succeeded when they listed to upbeat music by Copland as opposed to some of the more somber pieces composed by Stravinsky.
And a happier mood brings benefits beyond feeling good. In a press release, lead study author Yuna Ferguson from the University of Missouri noted that happiness has been linked to better physical health, higher income, and greater relationship satisfaction.
The restorative benefits of music go well beyond changing the mood of people. One study determined that music helped people who had just come out of cardiac surgery in Sweden. Soft and relaxing new-age music was show to help reduce the stress levels of patients in the recovery area of the hospital following surgery.
Another study showed that patients awaiting surgery often suffer from fear and anxiety, which can be prevented by anxiolytic drugs. Relaxing music was shown to be an effective alternative to these drugs, with fewer adverse side effects.
Music also has the power to help us manage pain. A study on this subject was conducted with people suffering from Fibromyalgia - a poorly understood chronic pain syndrome. The music intervention consisted of listening to music once a day for 4 consecutive weeks. The treatment group reported a significant reduction in pain and depression at week 4 compared to the control group who did not listen to music.
It is not clear why music may reduce pain, though it appears that music's impact on dopamine release may play a role. Of course, stress and pain are closely linked, so the positive impact music has on reducing stress may also partially explain its positive impact on pain management.
Music may also improve the function of the human immune system. Researchers at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, PA studied how music impacted levels of IgA - ad important antibody for the human immune system's first line of defense against disease.
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| The musical duel of Pan and Apollo. |
Undergraduate students have their salivary IgA levels measured before and after 30 minutes of listening to one of four programs: A tone click, a radio broadcast, a recording of soothing music or silence. The lucky kids exposed to the soothing music had significantly greater increases in IgA that the others.
It's likely PAN did not understand the science behind the positive effects music had on both people and deities alike. After all, in his famous musical competition with Apollo, the ending was not so happy for him - but Apollo had one heck of a good time strumming his golden lyre.
