Importance of Music in Human Life

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Music is a form of art. When different kinds of sounds are put together or mixed together to form a new sound which is pleasing to the human beings, it is called music. Music is derived from the Greek word Mousike, which means the art of muses. Muses included the goddess of music, poetry, art and dance in ancient Greece. Music includes two things, one is the people singing, and the other is sound from the musical instruments. The person who makes music is called a musician.

Every sound cannot be categorized as music. A sound may be noise or music. Music is the sound which is pleasing to the human ear but noise is not. It is also possible that a sound which is music for one person may be noise for some other person.  For example, the loud rock music or hip-hop is music for the teenagers or the younger generation but it is the noise for the elderly.

Origin of Music

There are so many theories which indicate when and where did music originate. Some historiographers believe that music existed even before the time when the man came into existence. They have categorized music into six eras. Each era is classified by the change in the musical style. These changes have shaped the music we listen to now. The first era was medieval or the middle ages. This age marks the beginning of polyphony and musical notations. Monophonic music and polyphonic music were the two main types of music which were popular in that era. In this era, the newly emerged Christian churches established universities which dictated the destiny of music. This was the time when the music called Gregorian chant was collected and codified. His era also created a new type of music called organum. Guillaume de Machaut, the great name in music, appeared in this era. This era was followed by the Renaissance. The word renaissance literally means rebirth. This era was from CA 1420 to 1600. At this time, the sacred music broke the walls of the church began to spread in schools. The music started to be composed in schools.  In this era, dance music and instrumental music was being performed in abundance. English madrigal also started to flourish in the late renaissance period. This type of music was composed by masters like William Byrd, John Dowland, Thomas Morley and many others. After this, came the Baroque age which began in CA 1600 and ended in 1750. The word baroque is derived from an Italian word Barocco which means bizarre, weird or strange. This age is characterized by the different experiments performed on music. Instrumental music and opera started to develop at this age. Johann Sebastian Bach was the greater music composer of this period. It was then followed by the classical age which roughly began in 1750 and ended in 1820. The style of music transformed into simple melodies from the heavy ornamental music of the baroque age. A piano was the primary instrument used by the composers. The Austrian capital Vienna became the musical centre of Europe. Composers came to Vienna to learn music from all over Europe. The music which was composed in this era is now referred to as the Viennese style of music. Now came the Romantic era which began in 1820 and ended in 1900. In this era, the music composers added very deep emotions in their music. The artists started to express their emotions using music. The late nineteenth century was characterized by the Late Romantic composers. As the century turns, so did the music. Now came the twentieth-century music. This phase is characterized by many innovations which were performed in music. New types of music were created. Technologies were developed which enhanced the quality of music.

Importance of Music

Music is not just a source of entertainment in our life. It is something more than it. Music has become very important in our life.

  • Music makes us Creative: Music is the key to creativity. Music improves our mind. It makes it more creative and innovative. Music fills our mind with art and every great invention requires art, creativity and imagination. Sometimes these abilities are provided by music. Music increases our understanding ability. For example, when we listen to some song, we understand its lyrics. We try to understand want the singer is trying to convey through his song. When a person listens to instrumental music he is using his right brain to understand what a musician is trying to say with his music without using words. On the other hand, when we are playing some instrument, we play the tone which reflects our thoughts and our emotions. In this process, we use our brain to convey our thoughts with just music and without using the ability to speak. When we use our mind in music that is when we think about music when we try to understand it makes our mind more creative. And a creative mind can create many new and useful discoveries.
  • Music makes Learning more Enjoyable: Music is a very effective tool for developing the memorizing capability. We all have seen that we can learn a song very easily and faster than learning our syllabus. This is because our mind enjoys music. Whatever is enjoyed by our mind, it retains it. This can be related to the fact that whenever we enjoy our life that moments are retained in our mind forever. Therefore, when we have to learn something we have to enjoy. Music is a good option for this. Whenever the students start their schooling or pre-schooling, the teachers teach them poems first. They sing the poems to the little children. The students find it very interesting and retain them in their mind. The music in the poems makes them more enjoyable. Maybe this is the reason that all of us remember the poems taught to us in our early childhood till now and they will be in our mind in future also. Music has been used to teach multiplication tables to the students. When the students sing the multiplication table in the form of a song, they enjoy it and retain it in their mind.
  • Music can Play with Our Emotions: Most of us, when we are sad to listen to our favourite music, this because music acts as a stress buster for us. We feel relaxed and calm when we listen to music. But all the types of music cannot cheer up us. It depends on the type of music which we are listening to. Music can change our mood in just a few seconds. When we are listening to some dance beats, we are enjoying it and sometimes even dancing on it. But if someone comes and suddenly changes the music rack and puts some sad emotional song, our mood changes abruptly. We immediately start to feel the emotions hidden in the songs.  Music causes mood swings. This is why we should hear the songs which cheer us up when we feel low. When we are sad we should listen to the music which is full of energy not which is very sad or emotional. When some bad memory is disturbing us, music is a great option to forget that memory at least for the time being. Music is also a great option for the people who are depressed. Music can make them feel happy, stress less, tension free, calm and will make them enjoy. Therefore, music is not less than any stress buster.

Importance of Music in Children’s Life

It’s not only the adults who benefit from music the tiny children also have benefited from music.

  • Music develops the Linguistic Skills of Children: Songs and poems develop language skills in the children at a very early stage. The children start to recognize voice, tones and words even before they begin to speak read or write. When children listen to music in the form of songs or poems, the words used in them have a great impact on their mind. They start to understand what is being conveyed to them in the form of music. They start to imagine what is being sung. They try to understand the meaning of words used in them. Music becomes a language for them. They gain a command of the language used in the music.
  • Music develops Listening Skills in Children: When children are listening to music, it develops their listening skills. By listening to music, the children can differentiate between the different tones, voices, or melodies. It develops the understanding and meaning of the soft, hard or loud voice. They get to know the different moods of a person which are conveyed by using music and different tones.
  • Music induces Movement in Children: Movement and music are partners. When children listen to music, they respond to it by moving their body that is shaking their head or tapping their feet or performing some actions with their hands. When the children perform movements while listening to the music, it develops their coordination skills.
  • Music TherapyThe idea of healing a person with the use of music is called music therapy. Music therapy is beneficial for the patients with cancer, the children who are suffering from ADD, or patients with muscle pain or depression. Many hospitals have started using music therapy in their treatment process.

Research has shown that when we listen to music, our brain waves resonate in sync with the beats of the music. This means that when we listen to fast and energetic music, it brings sharp concentration and increased thinking level in our brain. On the other hand, when we listen to slow and calm music, our mind becomes all the way more relaxed and we attain a peaceful state of mind. With the changes in our brain waves, changes in our body function also occur. We can say that music has a direct impact on our nervous system which affects our breathing rate and heartbeat rate. This is how music helps the doctor to cope up with chronic stress in the patients and promote relaxation.

Conclusion
Other than entertainment, music has a very important role in our life. It develops our brain and the abilities associated with it. it is advantageous for developing skills in children and also in teaching them. Music therapy helps in healing dangerous and some chronic diseases. But we should be careful about what type of music we are listening to. For example, there are some songs which have rude language or abusive words which should not be heard by the children otherwise they will retain them in their mind which is not at all good for them. But overall, music is very beneficial for all of us and should be included in everyone’s daily life.