Our moods are important in how the day goes. Music provides a soundtrack to everyday lives. It can help you focus, get your adrenaline pumping and cry. Music gives people an opportunity to feel and express emotions. The mindset music can help with is sports, studying and meditating. Neuropsychologist Dr. David Levitin, of McGill University (Montreal) said, “[Music] can increase immune system functions. There’s stronger evidence that it can affect mood and heart rate and respiration rate. So, fast stimulating music stimulates the production of adrenaline and other hormones that get your heart racing faster and your pulse increases and blood pressure increases and then soothing, relaxing music has the opposite effect.”
Many people use music for soothing their current mood or to help change it. Blackburn sophomore Chris Morrison said, “I listen to Eminem and G-Eazy before my baseball games because it gets me focused and game ready. It gets me in the zone.” Morrison is among many athletes who use music to get their mind and body game ready. Major League Baseball players all use a walk-up song to get them in the right mindset. Third baseman for the Chicago White Sox Todd Frazier uses Frank Sinatra for his walk-up songs.
Movie score composer John Williams has been an important figure in the music industry creating emotional music. “There is a very basic human, non-verbal aspect to our need to make music and use it as part of our human expression. It does not have to do with body movements, it does not have to do with articulation of language, but with something spiritual.” Williams’ work is to add music and emotion to a movie experience. His movie scores include “Star Wars,” “Jaws,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “E.T. the Extraterrestrial.” The feeling of horror when Michael Myers is gaining on his next victim or the crying of violins when a person dies in a movie impacts us.
For me, music always has a positive effect on me even if the song has a sad theme
Music provides a certain edge for performers like athletes and actors. “For me, music always has a positive effect on me even if the song has a sad theme,” said musical theater/computer science major Jessica Cramer. She is active in most of Blackburn’s musical productions and said, “While performing, music motivates me.” Cramer uses music to guide her focus and to enhance her life moments with the feelings that music can provide her.
Music continues to be play a part in our emotions and health. People enjoy music and use it for therapy, to get through their day or to get motivated. Whether it is The Beatles or the heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold, there is music for everyone.