Friday Coffee with MAP – November 1, 2024

Hello , and welcome to Friday Coffee with MAP!

Welcome to the first Friday Coffee of November 2024! As emotions run high prior to Tuesday’s election, we thought we’d explore a topic that is both slightly lighter– and possibly useful as we look to regulate our emotions in the weeks to come. This week’s piece is about the power of music, and how effective it can be in building emotional wellbeing. By instilling your listening with curiosity and intent, the piece argues, we can build a deeper understanding of ourselves, and of life.

Happy reading!

“Enhance Your Mood With Schopenhauer’s Playlist”
_{by Arthur C. Brooks for The Atlantic}

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19th-century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer believed that listening to music was one of the “oracles” that helped humans connect with the truth about life– that it opened up a unique channel of higher consciousness. This point of view is shared not only by other thinkers and philosophers, but also by scientists.

First: it is human instinct. Music has appeared in every human society ever documented. Styles differ from culture to culture, but the making and appreciation of music are ubiquitous across human life.

In 2018, a study conducted through the Berklee College of Music showed that our brains are built to enjoy and benefit from music. Music showed to pacify the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, access areas of memory dulled by Alzheimer’s disease, and decrease the frequency of seizures in those with epilepsy.

Music also has a clear emotional effect. Studies of brain waves have supported the remarkable ability of happy & upbeat music to induce greater happiness, and in sad or more aggressive music to make people feel understood or less alone in their unhappiness.

Brooks provides four tips for maximizing music’s innate effects to heighten emotional experiences and gain a deeper sense of meaning and self understanding:

Decide what you want from your music: Research shows that music can be used to bond socially. It also shows that it can intensify personal emotions. But it can rarely do both at the same time. If you want to feel a more raw emotional experience, listen or go to a concert by yourself.

Follow a recipe: Understand that music shown to elicit a more positive response is usually faster tempo, has specific chord changes, or is previously affiliated with positive memories. Create a catalog of songs that make you feel specific emotions, paying attention to each one’s characteristics– and the emotional response you usually have.

Learn and Grow: To expand and refine your music taste, think about the emotional and cognitive effects music has on you—try Italian opera like Puccini’s Tosca or La Bohème for love songs, or elevate the thrill of guitar riffs with flamenco virtuosos like Paco de Lucía.

Play it Yourself: Learning to play an instrument can enhance your connection to music, and heighten its emotional effect. Why not try it for yourself?

By the end of his life, Schopenhauer listened almost exclusively to one composer: the Italian Gioachino Rossini. He reportedly rolled his eyes up to heaven when listening to his music and speaking about it. Through research and diligence, you too can make music a part of your life that takes you into higher levels of consciousness and self-awareness.

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So tell us: What is the most emotional response you’ve ever had to a piece of music? Does that piece of music still carry an emotional weight to this day?

We’re looking forward to hearing from you! Have a wonderful weekend.

Thank you,

The MAP Team

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Los Angeles, CA 90064
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