Some songs do not come out of our heads and give the impression that we are falling into an infinite loop, they do not leave and repeat themselves tirelessly, like an insistent echo that holds us by its melody, its lyrics and its rhythm. .
Sometimes your presence can be pleasant, but the situation becomes frustrating when the song in question is that fashionable song that we don’t like, but that we hear on the street or in the mall.
- We know that the brain has its mysteries.
- But let us admit that sometimes these riddles are disturbing.
- Especially when we experience phenomena beyond our control.
- We know.
- For example.
- That 98% of people have already felt this feeling.
However, studies such as the University of British Columbia, Canada, indicate that 15% of cases are particularly intrusive and irritating.
In these last situations we are already entering the field of obsessive-compulsive disorder, in which music can act as something very disturbing to the person.
However, for the rest, this is not alarming. This almost always becomes an anecdotal fact that we share in conversations with friends.
“If I wasn’t a physicist, I’d probably be a musician. I usually think about music. I live my dreams in music. I see my life in terms of music, Albert Einstein?”
Earworm or earworm. This is the term psychologists use to define this phenomenon. Musical verses shape these catchy melodies that stick to our brains and we can’t get rid of them.
Some people say that these phenomena are particularly common with artists like Lady Gaga, Queen, Abba, Beyoncé, Adele, Coldplay, etc.
Now, if we have musical verses with these musicians and singers it is because the exposure to their music is greater, because in reality any song, any melody or chorus can stay in our head, no matter who sings it.
We may even live this phenomenon without having to listen to a particular song, sometimes it only takes something that reminds us of a certain song to suddenly settle in our minds. Let’s see what the experts say about why a song. song?in us.
Composers and music producers know that. The simpler and more repetitive a song is, the more captivating its impact will be and the more the audience will remember.
Dr. Kelly Jakubowski of Durham University demonstrated in one study how such compositions were responsible for “musical verses”.
This data is very interesting. Next time a song surprises you, think about how you feel.
Dr. Vicky Williamson, a specialist in musical psychology, explains that, on average, it is more common to be receptive to the experience of this phenomenon when one feels stressed, tired, when he sleeps little or even when he feels nostalgic.
In a way, it’s as if the brain is tired or trapped in a specific emotional state, so it has a greater willingness to initiate repetition patterns, especially when there are musical stimuli nearby.
We’ve talked about that. You don’t always have to listen to a song in one place, on your cell phone, on the radio or in a store, to flood your mind. Sometimes we are the ones who start this phenomenon by remembering a lyric, a song, a song from the past.
In our environment, all of a sudden you can shoot a trigger, will those shoes we made this journey with be made by car, the ice that suddenly reminds us of a moment in our childhood when our grandmother sang us a song?
The brain likes to remember and emotional memory is directly related to musical memory, structures that are barely damaged by neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease.
It is true that this phenomenon can sometimes be very irritating, especially if it is a boring, childish song or that we do not like.
To break your curse or repetitive mechanism that our brain has arbitrarily triggered, ideally consider these suggestions.
Finally, neurologists point out that when we listen to a song it is better to chew gum to reduce its invasion, this movement of the jaw interferes with musical memory.
In any case, the most common thing is that this phenomenon does not last more than 24 hours.