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Impact of Music

Inspiration is what makes someone want to do something. Everybody is inspired by

something, whether it is a person, a quote, or a book. One of the most popular inspirations is

music. Music is everywhere and all around the nation. People draw inspiration from music

because it helps people at work and school to get tasks done, it inspires athletes to keep working

hard and run that extra minute. People suffering from disorders also benefit from music as does

infants learning to talk. Society is inspired by music whether it is politics or just giving someone

a boost of confidence to make a new friend. ​People enjoy music, however, they all too often

undervalue its impact.

Starting a task, such as forming an evaluation, editing a peer’s paper, writing an essay, or

successfully completing the task is an issue for many people in society today. In a work or school

environment, people are continuously distracted by constant, annoying sounds such as the

tapping of pens, the printer going on and off, or people talking about what they did over the

weekend. This loud environment makes it almost impossible for people to complete a necessary

task or even pay attention at work or school. Tom Popomaronis, a social entrepreneur, says, “​If

your workspace is noisy, the brain will try to handle all the individual pieces of data in the noise.

All that data processing ​takes energy​ you otherwise could use to focus on your job.” ​The ability

to be productive, stay focused, and maintain calm becomes easier with the help of music,

preferably classical, instrumental music. Putting in earbuds while playing such music, can block

out the constant sounds occurring in the office or class. In addition to music helping one’s focus,

it also boosts people's moods. If somebody mood is positive, they are more likely to stay focused

rather than if they were in a bad mood because they are not distracted by the negative events in
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their life. A student who attends Westerly High School says “I listen to music while taking on

major projects to lower my stress and put me into a better mood to get motivated” (Greene).

Music creates a positive mood, which in turn, helps develop overall positive attitudes which then

causes an increase in productivity.

In fact, Dr. Teresa Lesiuk, an a​ssistant professor in the music therapy​ department ​at the

University of Windsor in Canada ​, notes “Research focuses on how music affects workplace

performance​. In one study involving information technology specialists, I found that those who

listened to music, completed their tasks more quickly and came up with better ideas than those

who didn’t, because the music improved their mood”(Padnani). ​Students, whose workplace is

school, would concur that listening to music during school helps them to produce work. Those

who play soft music as a background resist giving into their fatigue, and they also believe the

music causes their brains to focus and attend more to the work they are doing. With this ambient

background sound, “a student is able to learn more in a relaxed state of mind” (Ciotti). Music

also helps students with the task of studying for a test or exams. Listening to music before, or

while studying, “​can be beneficial as it improves attention, memory...”, and when it comes time

to take the test, the student will have memorized the information often without realizing it

(Ciotti). Often, the students will have boosted their performance on the tests due to the impact of

the music they listened to while studying.

Also exemplifying the idea of increase in performance, listening to music while

exercising helps motivate people to keep working out, which makes people feel better about

themselves. When a person's favorite song comes on while running or engaging in any sort of

work out, the music provides a boost of adrenaline, to finish those last few minutes on the
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treadmill or the last couple of pushups. Along with boosting adrenaline music also boosts

confidence. Working out and “Listening to Beyonce’s ‘Run the World’ might send a positive

message to the brain about performance, which might in turn boost confidence”(Strum). Just as

background music helps students stay engaged while studying, music also helps the brain stay

awake while working out. When choosing songs for a work-out session, it is best to find a tempo

that matches the person's heart rate because the tempo increases stamina and performance.

Costas Karageorghis, author of the book, ​Applying Music in Exercise and Sport​, states “The

sweet spot, he said, is around 120 bpm, which is the average heart rate during a light

jog”(Strum). In addition to music helping performance when working out, it also activates the

brain. When listening to music, a hormone called dopamine, a chemical that blocks out pain, is

released in the temporal lobe. When dopamine is released while exercising, the chemical will

make it less likely for someone to stop working out because of a cramp or even boredom, which

will increase the person's performance. Music enhances people’s performance during physical

activities.

Likewise,when a person suffers with depression or anxiety, music has the ability to help

such people cope with the symptoms associated with these disorders. Such symptoms sometimes

include panic attacks, nervousness, or inability to sleep. Certain music selections slow down the

heart rate, so when panicking, the person can relax and begin to think more clearly. The lowering

of blood pressure and the decrease of cortisol, a stress hormone, also occurs when listening to

calming music. For example, before surgery many patients feel anxious and preoccupied about

the procedure and tend to over the negative possibilities that can occur. Also connected to

depression and anxiety is insomnia. People who have trouble falling and staying asleep report
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that listening to music in sleep is beneficial. Many people cannot sleep due to worry and stress.

Eventually, after a few weeks of music during sleeps, effects such as sleeping through the night,

falling asleep easier and faster and waking up feeling well rested should occur (​“How Music Can

Help”). ​Before surgery, many patients feel preoccupied about the procedure and tend to

overthink. Listening to music is “found to be more effective than prescription drugs in reducing

anxiety before surgery” (Novotney). The best music to listen to with those symptoms of

depression and anxiety is classical music. It is most effective for slowing the heart rate down and

lowering blood pressure because of the tempo. Coping with these health issues is not easy, but

music helps to alleviate these symptoms (Storrs).

Music also helps infants’ brains develop, and become familiar to their environment. In

addition to babies being ​born into this world and taught language, they also are introduced to

music very early. In the same way infants babble, they also babble songs. Daniel Levitin, Ph.D.,

author of ​This Is Your Brain on Music​, says “Your baby may make up little songs and train

himself to hear and create various musical ideas. Singing to them, or patting his back or rocking

to music, can help strengthen the musical pathways in his brain”(Miller). Music provides

children one type of starting point for bonding with a parent and developing language. Singing

songs or rhyming with rhythm, grabs the infant’s attention, just like a toy would. In song, a child

and parent can continue to learn and create a bond. Parents singing to their child creates this

bond by simply allowing the child to listen to their voices, but it also helps babies develop

speech. According to Sally Goddard Blythe, a consultant in neuro-developmental education and

director of the Institute for Neuro-Physiological Psychology, a “Song is a special type of speech.

Lullabies, songs and rhymes of every culture carry the 'signature' melodies and inflections of a
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mother tongue, preparing a child's ear, voice and brain for language"(Hill). Likewise, songs

subliminally ​introduce the memorization, of words and rhymes to infants, babies and children.

Beyond affecting children, in the past and the present, music also has dramatically

influenced political movements. “Give Peace a Chance” by John Lennon quickly became the

anthem for anti war in 1969. From then, “sixties folk and rock sung by artists such as Bob Dylan

rallied people against the Vietnam war as well as social inequality” along with protests after

World War II (Gavish). When creating these songs, many artists did not know they would

become so successful. Bob Dylan, who was known as the protest song writer said that he had no

way of knowing his songs would become an anthem of the Civil Rights movement. Some other

songs he wrote that became known for generating movements are “Blowing in the Wind”, “A

Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”, and “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere”. Many songs and chants have been

used to discuss politics and issues in the world to try to make a movement of change. Other

artists such as Madonna, U2 and Bruce Springsteen often discuss politics during their live

performances, then play music to impact their audiences. Madonna put on a concert to show

support to Hillary Clinton. During this concert, Madonna said, "This is a concert that is about

unifying us," referring to Clinton as "a president that is going to keep America the great country

that it is." then went on to sing “Imagine” by John lennon to further extend her political

statement (Haynes). Rap music from the 80s to today has shown and examined police brutality.

In Frank Ocean’s song “Nikes,” off his recent album, he sings “RIP Trayvon, that n---a look just

like me” referencing Trayvon Martin, an African American high school student, who was

allegedly shot by a neighborhood watch captain (Lynskey). Another musician, Kendrick Lamar

produced his album ​To Pimp a Butterfly​ to make a political comment about brutality and gang
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violence.. Music over the years has helped to support social justice issues and a political

movement in society.

In society, music has also helped create friendships, relationships and memories. Music is

a popular conversation starter. Discussing what people listen to or their favorite songs and artists,

helps friendships bloom. If two people enjoy listening to the same artist, they may share other

interests too. Even school dance organizers hire DJs to entertain the crowd and play music that

everyone will enjoy. Creating this atmosphere generates a positive aura. While gathering around

a campfire with friends and family, playing music, creates bonds. Listening to music and singing

together can “impact neuro-chemicals in the brain, many of which play a role in closeness and

connection” creating friendships (Suttie). Concerts especially impact people's social lives. A

recent ​study​ at Oxford University found that “synchronizing with others while dancing, raises

pain tolerance and encourages people to feel closer to others,” which explains the social bonding

that takes place on dance floors, at concerts, and in music festivals (Deflin). Going out to

concerts with a group of friends, dancing, screaming and jumping to the same music, and

meeting people with similar tastes can form relationships.

Despite its positive impacts, many adults often believe music is a disruptive force for

people needing to focus. Bosses and teachers alike report noticing their employees and students

respectively, being ​off task​ while listening to music. When someone listens to music during a

working period, and instead of attending the task, appears to be daydreaming or even rocking in

their seats to the rhythm of the music, supervising adults report feeling frustrated. They have a

point, however, as Ciotti, a writer and marketing strategist notes, “Trying to engage in

language-related tasks-such as writing-while listening to lyrics would be akin to holding a

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conversation while another person talks to you” (Ciotti). With such a bombardment of words, it

would instead behoove people, attempting to complete a task, to listen to instrumental music,

rather than lyrical music. When doing so, people are more apt to stay focused.

Music is everywhere. The billion dollar industry is used by people from all over the

world everyday. Companies have invented music stations such as Pandora, Spotify, and Itunes to

make it easier for people to access songs. Employees and students take advantage of music to

avoid background noise that distracts them, helping them to keep focused. Often, students use

music while studying to help them memorize the information. Athletes and people who just

enjoy working out, put in headphones because the music motivates them to continue their work

and finish out strong. When suffering with disorders, such as anxiety and depression, many

people also listen to music to motivate them and help them make it through the day. In addition,

the parents who play music for their infants help their children's brain and development

strengthen. In politics, artists and protesters create songs and chants to share or stimulate justice

issues. Music is an inspiration to the world and will continue to positively affect people's

everyday lives. With more awareness of music’s attributes beyond pleasurable listening, people's

lives will be further enhanced.

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Works Cited

Ciotti, Gregory. “How Music Affects Your Productivity.” ​Help Scout Blog​, 27 Aug. 2015,

www.helpscout.net/blog/music-productivity/​.

Deflin, Kendall. “Why We Make More Friends And Feel Less Pain At Concerts.” ​L4LM​, 9

Apr. 2017,

liveforlivemusic.com/news/why-we-make-friends-and-feel-less-pain-at-concerts/.

Gavish, Eitan. “Music Has Always Been a Tuneful Force for Political Change.” ​NY Daily

News​, 10 Oct. 2009,

www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/music-arts/music-tuneful-force-political-change-ar

ticle-1.381154​.

Haynes, Suyin. “Madonna Performs At New York Rally For Hillary Clinton.” ​Time​, Time, 8

Nov. 2016,

time.com/4562276/madonna-surprise-concert-hillary-clinton/.

Hill, Amelia. “Singing to Children May Help Development of Language Skills.” ​The

Guardian​, Guardian News and Media, Aug. 2011,

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/may/08/singing-children-development-language

-skills​.

How Music Can Help You Sleep Better.” National Sleep Foundation. ​Sleep.Org​,

sleep.org/articles/sleep-music/.

Lynskey , Dorian. “Music Got Political In 2016 With Beyonce & Neil Young, But Did It

Make a Difference?” ​Billboard​, 12 Dec. 2016,

www.billboard.com/articles/events/year-in-music-2016/7616882/music-2016-politics-b
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eyonce-neil-young-protest​.

Miller, Lori Kase. “The Benefits of Introducing Baby to Music.” ​Parents​, 11 June 2015,

www.parents.com/baby/development/intellectual/rock-the-cradle/​.

“ Novotney, Amy. “Monitor on Psychology,” American Psychological Association,

www.apa.org/monitor/2013/11/music.aspx​.

Padnani, Amisha. “The Power of Music, Tapped in a Cubicle.” ​The New York Times​, 11

Aug. 2012,

www.nytimes.com/2012/08/12/jobs/how-music-can-improve-worker-productivity-workst

ation.html?mcubz=0​.

Popomaronis, Tom. “What Listening to Music at Work Does to Your Brain (It's Pretty

Amazing).”

Inc.com​, Inc., 20 July 2016,

www.inc.com/tom-popomaronis/do-you-listen-to-music-while-working-heres-what-it-do

es-to-your-brain-and-its-pr.html​.

Storrs, Carina. “Surgery Patients Hear Benefits of Music Therapy Loud and Clear.” ​CNN​,

Cable News Network, 31 Mar. 2017,

www.cnn.com/2015/08/13/health/music-therapy-surgery-patients/index.html.

Strum, Lora. “Can Music Make You a Better Athlete?” ​PBS​, Public Broadcasting Service, 10

Aug. 2016,

​www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/can-music-make-you-a-better-athlete/​.

Suttie, Jill. “How Music Bonds Us Together.” ​Greater Good​, 28 June 2016,

greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_music_bonds_us_together.
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