The Secret of Music and the Feeling of Happiness

Recent studies have revealed the role of the brain in linking music to movement and how it stimulates feelings of enjoyment through rhythm (Groove) via our predictions and motor system. The studies indicate that our brains love to predict what will happen; when music presents a steady rhythm with some expected surprises, it triggers a delightful sense of "rhythm," as reported by the American newspaper "The Washington Post." Researchers noted that even infants as young as three months automatically move to the music when listening to the song "Everybody" by the Backstreet Boys. This feeling is associated with brain activity in reward and motivation areas, where music stimulates the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that enhances feelings of happiness and satisfaction, according to the results of a neuroimaging study conducted in 2020. One study found that music could be a non-pharmaceutical therapeutic method for the normal cognitive decline associated with aging. Psychological and neurological research has shown that the phenomenon of rhythm reveals something fundamental about how our brains work, as we enjoy trying to predict how the music will proceed and we move to assist us in making that prediction. Maria Witek, assistant professor of music at the University of Birmingham, stated that "when the musical rhythm is not entirely predictable, it invites us to move and fill the rhythm." She added, "Music requires us to move to be complete, as the power of rhythm lies in making music a distributed process in which we actively participate." However, not all music stimulates rhythm; studies suggest that music with moderate rhythmic complexity is the most exciting for this feeling, as it balances prediction and surprise, encouraging the brain to engage in predicting the next movement. On another note, body movement plays a key role in rhythm; studies, according to "The Washington Post," indicate that moving the head, clapping, or dancing enhances the sense of rhythm by linking auditory and motor signals in the brain. Music also plays an important social role, with studies showing that synchronizing movement with music promotes feelings of connection and belonging.