A recent study has found that engaging with new music benefits the brain.
Utilizing MRI scans, a group of Canadian scientists has demonstrated that when individuals listen to a new song for the first time, the reward center of the brain activates. A report in the Science journal reveals that the connections within the nucleus accumbens region strengthen when a listener finds enjoyment in the music.
Conducted at the Montreal Neurological Institute at McGill University, the study involved 19 volunteers who were played 60 pieces of new music. While lying in an MRI machine, the participants had the chance to “purchase” the songs they preferred from a simulated online music store.
The nucleus accumbens is recognized for its role in reward mechanisms. However, music is a more abstract stimulus; it’s unlike the tangible excitement that comes with food, sex, or money, which typically causes nucleus accumbens activity. Interestingly, this study highlights how anticipation and excitement can arise from something purely abstract—like the sound that follows.
Currently, the researchers aim to leverage their findings to explore the factors that influence individual music preferences, potentially providing insight into why different people are drawn to diverse musical genres.
by David Livingstone
