June 11, 2005
'private sountrack' revolution
A very interesting article in IOL on the importance of music in our culture and the rise of personal music devices.
"Ever since the first Walkman appeared in 1979, social scientists have railed against the alienation caused by personal music devices. Other scientists have warned us of the inevitable deafness and cerebral distraction.
We are caught in the middle of a musical war. Whole industries are built on dumping music on us, while others allow us to choose what we want to listen to. It's a battle royal for our ears, our brains, our bank accounts.
Music is arguably the quickest, most immediate mass cultural auger into the brain. Sound streams through the ears to the auditory cortex, which links directly to the limbic system, the emotional clearinghouse.
In a fraction of a second, your hearing's job is already accomplished. Then the mind and imagination take over. The sound is reshaped into more abstract representations of music. It conjures up notions of pleasure and displeasure, of desire and dissatisfaction, of memory and long-lost tinglings.
Neurologist Richard Restak says this pinball effect in the brain explains music's transcendence and power. It can "evoke an extremely intense experience," he says."
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