If there is such a thing as the collective unconscious, its manifestation is music. I say that not as a scientist, because I can’t. I say it as a writer, that is to say as a student of the human condition.
Music is practically a mind-altering substance. When it’s good, it’s got the weight of a whole human’s soul behind it. That can be infectious.
We share music. Love it, lump it, or live it, music works into the cracks of all of us. Music is about as close to magic as we get. It’s an intentional act with mysterious consequences.
Which isn’t to say that science has nothing to say about music. A great deal of science has been accomplished explaining the affects music has on the minds and bodies of the humans making and consuming the music.
The science tends to agree that the affects are varied and surprising. To most of us, it’s intuitive that music will help us stay calm. The feeling is real, and it only becomes strange when experts try to explain it. Music occupies that eerie place where physical pleasure and mental pleasure coexist with the hints of what, for lack of a surer name, is usually called a soul.
I have far too much to say about music and what it has to do with my happiness. Insert montage here:
Happiness and Music
Happiness sometimes gets mistaken for pleasure. They’re not the same thing. People can feel pleasure while happy, and sometimes happiness can be pleasant. But they aren’t the same. Pleasure is fleeting. Happiness is something else. Happiness is half a state of life. It has a thousand keys and tones, and it’s playing in the background of millions of experiences that range from the staccato abruptness of a two minute punk song to the airy grace of a Vivaldi concerto. Timeless and ever-epic: Music holds feelings, like a time capsule or a safety deposit box, kept safe for later use.
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Oliver is a wielder of words and a workshop master for all things content. He is a published author of books "Ragged Museum" and "City Song". #ThinkDigital is where a lot of his newest articles live when it comes to learning, unlearning, work-life-balance. He is also a much loved team member in Front Page News as our man on the ground in Denver.
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