Life Management: Music

Music and sounds have a profound impact on our well-being. Every day we unconsciously pick up messages from the background noise we hear. Music is supposed to provoke certain kinds of feelings and if they achieve this goal, it most often becomes popular. Melancholy tunes in the minor key provoke sad feelings in the brain, whereas more jolly tunes in the major key make us feel happy.

Everyone knows this but perhaps not everyone realises that what we hear really makes a difference. Personally I have banned myself from Finnish radio stations whenever I’m in the country, or I at least keep them to a minimum, because they send out so much negative background noise. Moaning agony aunt programmes and “chocolate for the soul”, i.e. Finnish pop music, help listeners to build their own melancholy swimming pool for themselves into which they can plunge. Listen to that for long enough and you become brainwashed, you stay constantly down even without the music.

New building technologies are researching the use of sounds in public places. It has been found that certain frequencies provoke certain neurophysiological reactions in the mind and thereon in the whole body. Relaxing frequencies, say at airport check-in desks, may prevent arguments.

I recommend relaxing music for office environments, which tend to be stimulating and stressful.

Published at 20:00

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