There are times when science manages to offer a more than poetic image. And the study that leads this news is, indeed, an example of this. It is well known that concertgoers They are moved in unison by the flow of the notes. But did you know that, in addition to that, we also literally synchronize their hearts? Research published this Thursday in the journal ‘Scientific Advances’ reveals that live music achieves can cause heart rate synchronization and respiratory, as well as the electrical conductivity of the skin of the attendees.
The research, led by a panel of experts from the University of Bern (Switzerland), monitored the reaction of 132 spectators to a classical music concert. For this, a small constellation of aerial cameras and sensors to observe, from the heights of the auditorium, the movements of people before the notes played by a string quintet. Additionally, they also asked participants to respond to a short survey about their mood before and after the event.
The result? According to the researchers, led by Swiss psychologist Wolfgang Tschacher, music can induce a “synchronization of the physical responses” of an audience. This can be seen, for example, with heartbeat or breathing (this last being the feature that, curiously, was most in tune with the music). This phenomenon is especially interesting because, until now, it has almost always been observed in human interactions. In this case, then, it would be shown that it is also possible synchronize hearts from an external factor like some musical notes.
Synchronized brains
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This is not the first time that a study shows how music manages to synchronize different people. A few years ago, for example, research published in the magazine ‘NeuroImage’ showed that during a concert a certain synchronization is also observed between the brains of the musicians and that of the listeners who are enjoying the notes. This suggests that auditory stimuli could ‘turn on’ a certain set of neurons in unison and this, in turn, could cause a synchronized reaction.
And did you know that this It doesn’t just happen among humans.? Just a few months ago, another study in the journal ‘Science Advances’ showed that rats are also capable of moving their heads to the rhythm of music. This, on the one hand, suggests that the ability to synchronize with music It is not something exclusive to our species. And on the other hand, it also indicates that the ability to perceive rhythm and move the body in synchrony with it could be inherent to the neuronal dynamics that are conserved in all species.