Week 4

We absorb and respond to vibrations and rhythm before we are born.  Music is energy and can be explained through physics and math.  Music exists in nature.  Animals synchronize their songs.  Humpbacked whale calls are particularly complex in pattern, rhythm and form.  Scientists are even measuring frequencies in the cosmos.

Music's effects on the brain continue to be a topic of research and it's place throughout evolutionary history pondered.  The Mannes video, The Music Instinct, really inspires some deep thinking about music's role in our lives and throughout time.  It's amazing how many different parts of the brain are affected by listening to and making music.  We've become good at finding music that pleases us and directly effects the reward center of brain that emits dopamine.  The auditory and motor areas of the brain are thicker in musicians.  The technological advances that allow us to see what happens in the brain will continue to unlock the mystery behind our deep connection to music.

I'm really struck by symmetry in physics, math, music, art, and just about everything.  Human's like symmetry.  String theory is fascinating.  Fractals are fascinating. Sound waves, and the overtone series can all be explained with physics and math.  It's interesting that the breaking of patterns is what really excites us. One of the speakers in the video said that goose bumps happen when we her enharmonic change and syncopation.