Why do we like music?

[Dalek]

I'm wondering what makes music appear in every culture and can have such an impact on people(including me). My dad's theory is that it's because eversince being in the uterus we're used to hearing the beat of the heart, so music makes us feel protected and safe in some way, and I kind of aggree with this. Why do you think we appreciate patterned noise so much?

[Iron Sulfide]

those are some interesting thoughts. I know a lot of pregnant moms force music on their children in utero.

personally, I think there's a whole slew of reasons people appreciate music. What you mentioned is probably
the foundational element. I think that as a person, communication and intelligence offer something to like about
either making or enjoying music. There's something significant about the fact that it's not just a random thing.
Like Moonlight Sonata, part I - that musical piece *could* have occurred at random, produced by a non-conscious
aspect of nature enacting it's laws against itself...But the fact that that noise was intentional makes it much different.

There is a lot to be said about specific types of tonal structure, key, voicing, etc etc from music theory-
from Pythagoras to College Classes. There's also the notion (I wouldn't call it "Science") that everything is essentially
a vibrational pattern (whether you go the David Icke route or the String Theory route). Both of these could easily
account (assuming their truth values are correct) for the- would you say?- primal quality to music.

Of course, Music theory just deals, mainly, with aesthetics- and I have found that I have, or can, or do enjoy sounds
that I'm not supposed to. I also believe that String Theory and David Icke are both Law of 5's bullshit. That said,
it's probably mostly early exposure to patterned noise, and the muted sounds you hear in utero.

[Thurnez Isa]

moi opinion
brains are hotwired to pick up vibrations - ie. language. Music breaks through the language barrier so one tribe could communicate it's experience with another. Cultural evolution does the rest.
Also don't underestimate a lot of our music started as a mechanism for dance, and dance fulfills this need to break communication as body language is the most effect way for humans to interact.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

I think that it's just the way we're wired. It's much easier to learn something if it is sung. That's why there's the alphabet song, and you can't go through the alphabet without breaking out into that particular song. Plus it's fun to make noise. That's why some asshole always gives your kid an obnoxious tin whistle which will invariably drive you nuts.

[tyrannosaurus vex]

There are a lot of reasons why I like music...

A good rhythm can instantaneously improve my mood by making me feel driven somehow, if that makes any sense... it's like a beat can pick up the slack for a faltering mental/emotional state.

Melody can immediately sync up to my emotional state, validating the way I feel, giving me a sense of recognition even though it's entirely in my head.

Harmony and weird progressions in a song can create a headspace that drowns out the dull background noise of natural environment, giving my brain a channel to run through where it's easier to complete a thought without being interrupted.

A good piece of music can relate an entire universe of emotion, tell a story without a single word, and gives you a place to escape to.

It's also mathematical -- the relationships between notes are defined in mathematical terms, frequency, harmonics, etc. Beats can generally be measured mathematically, like anything in the universe. So music is a simplified piece of a chaotic (not random, but sometimes overwhelming) reality. If a string of notes and beats comes together just right it's like it sums up the entirety of an overcomplicated situation in much the same way that an effective piece of prose can do.

[East Coast Hustle]

I like music because it rocks.

[maphdet]

Patterned noise makes humans' bodies move.

That is all.

[Adios]

Find a quiet place away from the sounds of human ants.

Can you hear the leaves whisper in their wandering harmonies as the wind brushes them? Did you hear the mingling of the vocals from the birds and squirrels?  Be sure to not miss the musical stream adding depth to the symphony, with it's tinkling and splashing.

Listen to the wind as it plays around trees and rocks speaking in a universally unknown language. Hear the quiet scuffing of small animals working through their day.

Find the rythm, the heartbeat, listen to the crescendo as the sun sets and finally the quietness of night.

Now go back to town and listen to the music the place makes.

Then you will understand why we like music.

[LMNO]

Pattern recognition.  Our brains are wired for it.

[Rumckle]

I think LMNO has it.

But I do believe there is a mental disorder where people cannot hear music properly, so it just sounds like a whole bunch of noise.

[LMNO]

I've heard of that... I think the medical term is "Justin Bieber."

[AFK]

We are musical creatures ourselves.  If you stop and listen to your body, there's music going on everywhere.  Centered by that constant thump-thump-thump of the heart. 

But I think there are different levels of music appreciation for different people.  I've known people who will be tangentially interested in a few pop music artists, but could really care less about music. 

For me, music is the closest thing I have to any kind of spirituality.  Both in playing and listening.  And not to be too cliche, I would also consider music to be my recreational drug, and a big reason why I never bothered with actual drugs.  When I'm playing with a bunch of other people, and you get into that pocket, that groove, it becomes a very expansive and transcending experience.  You're inside the music.  You're creating it, but at the same time, it's kind of creating you.  It can harness and liberate massive amounts of emotional energy, something I think written language sometimes struggles to accomplish. 

[tyrannosaurus vex]

People who don't appreciate music have no souls.

[Elder Iptuous]

So with all this about the heartbeat at the center of our appreciation, i'm thinking that my appreciation for syncopation may indicate that i should have a cardio stress test...


actually i'm with LMNO.  the same holds true for our other aesthetics, no?....

[tyrannosaurus vex]

To be honest, I think we like music for the same reason we like genocide: because we are machines from Hell designed to make Metal and kill.