Music of Love

It is no news that music is an integral factor of love, merely walking in on a RnB song presses the question 'where is cupid?'. Form Greek art angels are sometimes portrayed to play the harp - hmm. Just as there are peculiar clothings for certain occasions and seasons, so are there music. The ability to discern what type of music is suitable for an occasion is not innate, rather it's a skill acquired over time, and when this skill is in its full maturity, love can play to its tune.

So, we start off by classifying the various types of music we have into two distinct groups; Stimulatory and Inhibitory music.

Stimulatory music;
alternative, pop, rock, dance, electronic, hip-hop/rap, reggae.

Inhibitory music;
RnB&soul, soft rock, blues, classical, jazz, reggae.

basically, this tells you the effect of these genre of music on our limbic system, which is the seat of our emotions.

Next we would be looking at qualities of a good song.

Lyrics
Music itself is nothing without good lyrics, the same can be said about a dress without details. When it comes to 'love-matters' lyrics is key, most times music serves as a mouth piece, it's bold, and blunt, does not tremble, or looses breathe in the ambiance of the one we love, hence a very good mediator. Here is a pitfall you must avoid, if music has to be the one talking it needs to have all the right words, and that's where your homework begins. There are more than a billion songs on the internet and am pretty sure we can all find the songs that express us best, so next time you intend downloading a song, try getting one with lovely lyrics.

Secondly, we will be looking at the power of rhythm
It cannot be proven that two people can feel the exact same thing from hearing a piece of music. For example, early missionaries to Africa thought that the nationals had bad rhythm. The missionaries said that when the nationals played on their drums it sounded like they were not beating in time. However, it was later discovered that the nationals were beating out complex polyrhythmic beats such as 2 against 3, 3 against 4, and 2 against 3 and 5, etc. These beats were too advanced for the missionaries to follow.
The brain works by looking at different pieces of information and deciding if they are different or the same. This is done in music of the baroque and classical periods by playing a theme and then repeating or changing the theme. The repetition is only done once. More than one repetition causes the music to become displeasing, and also causes a person to either enter a state of sub-conscious thinking or a state of anger. Dr. Ballam goes on to say that, "The human mind shuts down after three or four repetitions of a rhythm, or a melody, or a harmonic progression." Furthermore, excessive repetition causes people to release control of their thoughts. Rhythmic repetition is used by people who are trying to push certain ethics in their music.

lastly, we would be looking at the desired effect
Responses to music are easy to be detected in the human body. Classical music from the baroque period causes the heart beat and pulse rate to relax to the beat of the music. As the body becomes relaxed and alert, the mind is able to concentrate more easily. Furthermore, baroque music decreases blood pressure and enhances the ability to learn. Music affects the amplitude and frequency of brain waves, which can be measured by an electro-encephalogram. Music also affects breathing rate and electrical resistance of the skin. It has been observed to cause the pupils to dilate, increase blood pressure, and increase the heart rate.
Many revealing scientific experiments, studies, and research projects have been performed to try and discover the extent of the power of music. Up until 1970, most of the research done on music had to do with studying the effects of the beat of the music. It was found that slow music could slow the heartbeat and the breathing rate as well as bring down blood pressure. Faster music was found to speed up these same body measurements.

In conclusion, with these few points of mine i hope i have been able to convince you and not confuse you on how to make the perfect playlist for a perfect rendez-vous.

''if music be the food of love, play on!'' - William Shakespeare.

Source(s)
Laurence O'donnell