How music tunes the emotions in our memories

Music carries a remarkable ability to connect sound with lived experience, shaping how people recall their past. A melody can spark vivid memories, often with startling speed. Just a few notes may transport someone back to a childhood party, a first date, or a quiet evening walk.

A new study from Goldsmiths University of London explores how different kinds of songs, whether soft and acoustic or energetic and loud, affect the qualities of those memories. The findings reveal a fascinating interplay between musical properties and emotional recall.

Impact of songs on memories

Researchers Safiyyah Nawaz and Diana Omigie investigated whether specific features of music influence the type of autobiographical memories people recall.

While previous studies confirmed that songs are powerful triggers of memory, few examined how tempo, acousticness, or energy level shape those memories.

The researchers asked 233 people to take part in an online survey. Each person shared memories linked to two kinds of music: songs they chose themselves and popular songs from their younger years.

After collecting the responses to the survey, the team used statistical methods to look for patterns.

The goal was to determine whether certain qualities of songs, like being soft or energetic, matched up with specific types of memories – such as vivid, happy, or sad.

Energetic songs, exciting memories

The results drew a clear line between different types of songs. More acoustic, lower-energy pieces, like Debussy’s Clair de Lune, often brought back memories filled with calmness, romance, or even sadness.

Such memories were described as vivid, important, and unique, though less social in nature.

In contrast, energetic and less acoustic tracks, such as Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen, stirred memories of excitement, amusement, and social energy. Participants also reported recalling these memories more quickly than those tied to softer songs.

Personal choices carry deeper meaning

When people picked their own songs, the memories that came back were stronger and more emotional than those tied to common popular songs.

Personal choices carried deeper meaning because they were often connected to big moments in life, like important relationships or milestones.

This finding is significant because it shows that familiarity and personal connection make music an even more powerful memory trigger.

The researchers propose that personally meaningful songs could have therapeutic value.

In reminiscence therapy, for instance, playing music tied to a person’s life may help individuals with memory conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease recall past experiences more vividly and with greater positivity.

Linking songs and memory

“We all know of the experience of hearing a song and being transported back in time to a vivid memory associated with that song,” noted Nawaz

“As it turns out, the properties of the music itself, characteristics like acousticness, loudness and energy, relate to the emotional and phenomenological qualities of the same musical memories.”

According to Nawaz, the team discovered that more acoustic songs were associated with memories that were more vivid, unique, and characterized by complex emotions like romance and adoration.

Louder, more energetic songs were linked to social, exciting, high-energy memories that were recalled faster, she added.

Countless memories linked to songs

The researchers found analyzing over 1,400 musical memories both humbling and inspiring. Each song holds countless life moments for its listeners, offering a new way to see music as timeless.

Nawaz and her team also turned their work into a public project. They launched an online archive of musical memories, where some of the memories shared by participants are now available.

The goal is to broaden the collection beyond Western cultural samples, giving the research a more global foundation.

Study co-author Diana Omigie pointed to another key factor in memory formation: personal connection to the music.

“Our in-depth analysis showed that it’s not just the musical features that influence memory, but also how much a person likes a song and how familiar it is to them,” said Omigie.

“We hope future research will explore how musical elements interact with such personal elements to bring about the deep and meaningful memories that people experience in everyday life.”

The study is published in the journal PLOS One.

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