The Power of Music

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The Power of Music

Everyone knows the story of the Piped Piper of Hamelin. He had the ability to hypnotize people with his flute by playing the most enchanting music. But he's just myth, right? No one has the power to charm people with music. Well, you'd be surprised. Throughout history, music has always been recognized for its calming and almost hypnotic effects on the human mind, and for its ability to rouse and inspire the spirit. Only recently has science uncovered the truth about music. Researchers have long suspected that music affects the brain in the most profound ways, and now they finally have evidence to back up that theory. Such an interesting topic definitely deserves further exploration. Come with me on this journey as we delve into the deep recesses of the human mind on the wings of a softly played flute note.

After a hard day at work and a difficult commute home, many people just want to settle down on their soft sofas and turn on a CD. As the music fills the room, they instantly begin to relax. Stress melts away as they are taken in by the beauty of the music. Sound familiar? Probably, since all of us at one time or another have used music as a medium for relaxation. But scientifically speaking, how exactly does music help us relax? That in itself is a question worth exploring, and scientists are really not sure how music relieves stress. However, they do know that our bodies will naturally attempt to synchronize with external sounds and rhythms. Using this as a guide, experts in relaxation music suggest that we feed our auditory senses with music between the tempos of 60 to 90 beats per minute, as this is the ideal heart rate for relaxation. However, music that is enjoyable to you is as i...

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Knox, Richard A. "Sweet Taste in Music May Be Human Trait, Harvard Study Finds." Boston Globe, 5 September 1996, pp.A6.

Laliberte, Richard. "Inside Your Baby's Brain." Parents, September 1997, pp.48-56.

"Learning Keys: Music May Give Kids' Minds a Head Start." Prevention, February 1994. pp.24-25.

Music Brain Information Database. [Online] Available telnet: mbi@mila.ps.uci.edu, October 4, 1997.

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