11 Facts About Music: Explore The Less Known

Music Melody (Credit: Pixabay)

Many people believe that music is a universal language, a kind of expression that cuts over language, culture, and time. For thousands of years, it has been a part of our existence, changing with civilisation and becoming intricately entwined with our emotions, customs, and even our DNA. Even though everyone has some kind of musical experience, many people are not aware of the numerous fascinating facts regarding this art form whereby the history of music is packed with surprising turns, discoveries, and disclosures that test our conception of what music actually is, from the misinterpreted Mozart Effect to Beethoven's compositions despite his deafness, the 11 lesser-known but intriguing facts about music that go deeper into its complex and enigmatic nature will be covered in this blog post article with also these revelations providing a fresh viewpoint on how we engage with sound and silence in addition to showcasing the ingenuity and complexity of music as follows:

1. The "Mozart Effect" Is Misunderstood: The Mozart Effect, which holds that listening to Mozart's music increases intelligence, is one of the most well-known theories in the fields of music and cognitive science whereby following a 1993 study by Alfred A. Tomatis, who asserted that listening to Mozart's music might improve people's intelligence, particularly their capacity for spatial-temporal reasoning, this idea became widely accepted leading to a frenzy of research, media attention, and the general belief that classical music (particularly Mozart's works) could enhance brain function.

   Tomatis's original study and subsequent research, however, could not discover a direct correlation between Mozart listening and IQ. Rather, they discovered that a brief exposure to Mozart's music improved short-term spatial-temporal reasoning, a skill associated with the comprehension of the relationship between things in space and time where this effect was temporary short-lived, and unrelated to scholastic achievement or general intelligence.

   Therefore, the notion that listening to classical music might increase IQ is essentially untrue. We can enjoy Mozart's music for its beauty and intricacy, which can elevate mood and encourage a creative, reflective mindset, rather than marketing it as a miracle brain boost.

2. Beethoven Composed After Going Deaf: Many people consider Ludwig van Beethoven to be one of the greatest composers in history because of his profound piano sonatas, operas, and symphonies with also the fact that he continued to write some of his most well-known pieces even after losing the majority of his hearing, is among the most amazing parts of his life.

   Beethoven started to suffer from serious hearing loss in his late 20s, and it got worse over time. He was totally deaf by the time he wrote his Ninth Symphony. Interestingly, Beethoven continued to compose music despite his disability where he employed a range of instruments to support his compositions, such as ear trumpets and specially made sound-amplifying devices. He could also "hear" the music in his head and frequently felt its vibrations through the floor. Beethoven's final pieces are really regarded as some of his most deep and avant-garde, proving that music is not limited by the senses of the body.

3. The First Musical Instrument Was Likely a Bone Flute: Many of us envisage early humans singing simple tunes or drumming on drums when we consider the origins of music. However, flutes fashioned from animal bones that date back more than 40,000 years are the earliest musical instruments ever found by archaeologists.

   Prehistoric people probably employed these flutes for both ceremonial and recreational purposes which were crafted from the bones of birds or mammoths. These prehistoric instruments have been found in places like Germany's Swabian Jura, indicating that early humans were not only able to compose music but also that it was a significant part of their social and cultural lives. These bone flutes, which predate even the earliest recorded language, are regarded as some of the earliest examples of musical inventiveness.

4. Humans Can "Hear" Music in the Womb: Humans start to appreciate the delights of music before they are even born and according to studies, foetuses may detect sounds from the outside world as early as week 25 of pregnancy which includes outside sounds like a dog barking or a car honking, as well as music and spoken sounds.

   Through vibrations sent through the mother's body, researchers have discovered that the fetus is able to hear these sounds. It is interesting to note that research indicates foetuses are able to identify their mother's voice and react to sounds they are accustomed to once they are born. Although this is still an ongoing debate in the scientific community, some prenatal music programs assert that playing classical music to a pregnant woman can benefit the development of the unborn child.

5. The Shortest Song Ever Recorded Is 1.316 Seconds Long: The British grindcore band Napalm Death's song "You Suffer" is arguably the best example of how brevity can be an art form in the music industry whereby this song, which is only 1.316 seconds long, is the shortest officially acknowledged song. Delivered at breakneck pace, the song's single line, "You suffer, but why?" perfectly captures the raw intensity and anti-establishment mentality of the grindcore sub-genre where despite its extremely short duration, "You Suffer" has become a cult favourite and continues to be a peculiar landmark in music history.

6. Some Species of Birds Can "Compose" Songs: Although the beauty of bird song has long been recognized, did you know that some bird species can compose their own songs? The Australian native lyrebird is well known for its ability to imitate a variety of sounds, such as chainsaws, camera shutters, and even automobile alarms. In order to entice mates, lyrebirds may not only mimic the noises they hear but also incorporate them into intricate melodies. Lyrebirds are not the only ones who can compose "original" tunes, impressive vocal innovation is also displayed by other bird species, including the European starling (Common starling) and the northern mockingbird where the use of melody, rhythm, and inventiveness in these birds' songs is comparable to that of human music in many respects.

7. The World’s Largest Orchestra: A remarkable 7,224 musicians broke the previous Guinness World Record in 2019 when they performed Beethoven's Ode to Joy from his Ninth Symphony, a fitting selection considering the piece's themes of brotherhood and unity. The event, which took place in Frankfurt, brought together musicians of all ages and backgrounds, demonstrating the unifying power of music with also this historic accomplishment displaying not only the amazing coordination needed to put together such a large group, but also the enduring popularity of Beethoven's works worldwide.

8. Music Can Alter Your Heart Rate: Although we frequently consider music to be solely an emotional experience, it can also have significant physiological impacts in the sense that research has indicated that certain forms of music can affect blood pressure, heart rate, and stress levels in general like for example, fast-paced music, like energetic rock or pop, can activate the autonomic nervous system, raising blood pressure and heart rate. On the other hand, it has been demonstrated that listening to slow, calming music (think classical or ambient music) can drop heart rate, lessen stress, and encourage relaxation where due to its capacity to affect physical states, music therapy is becoming more and more popular in medical settings, especially for patients recovering from surgery or coping with pain or anxiety.

9. The Oldest Known Song Is Over 3,400 Years Old: Most people agree that the Hurrian Hymn No. 6 is the oldest piece of written music still in existence since it was found in Ugarit (present-day Syria) and dates to approximately 1400 BCE. It is written in cuneiform script on a clay tablet and the hymn was probably sung during religious events and was devoted to the goddess Nikkal. Although the hymn's complete musical notation has been lost over time, academics have been able to piece it back together, presenting an extraordinarily lovely and remarkably ancient melody with the Hurrian Hymn being proof of the ability of music to cut beyond place and time.

10. Tuning Forks Were Invented by a Musician, Not a Scientist: Although they are now a necessary instrument in the music industry, tuning forks' history is not as well recognized in the sense that the English musician John Shore, (the official trumpet player for Queen Anne's court), created the modern tuning fork in 1711 where in order to assist musicians in tuning their instruments to a standard pitch, Shore created the fork but before the invention of the tuning fork, musicians used a variety of techniques to tune their instruments, such as utilising the pitch of a string or other instruments making the tuning fork a groundbreaking for musicians because it produced a pure tone, and it quickly became a standard in orchestras and music schools all around the world.

11. The Sound of Silence in Music: One of the most well-known and contentious musical compositions in history is "4'33" by John Cage where the entire composition, which was written in 1952, is silent. For four minutes and thirty-three seconds, the performer does not play a single note while seated at a piano or other instrument and the ambient sound of the setting throughout the performance serve as the "music" in Cage's composition, making the audience face the notion that stillness itself might have a musical quality not forgetting that Cage's work has become a hallmark in avant-garde music, pushing the traditional limits of what is considered music, despite some critics dismissing it as nonsensical. Cage's compositions serve as a reminder that music encompasses more than just sound; it also involves the experience and setting in which it is listened to.

Summary

There are many things in the wide world of music, both known and undiscovered with the facts covered in this blog post article demonstrating the various ways music has impacted our lives, stimulated our creativity, and even affected our biology, from the earliest bone flutes to the profound silence of John Cage's compositions. The above little-known facts encourage us to reflect more thoroughly on the history, impact, and role of music in our world, even though a large portion of its charm is felt emotionally or physically. The above facts serve as a reminder that music is more than simply a sound; it is an enduring force that has been changing for tens of thousands of years, regardless of whether you are an experienced musician or a casual listener not forgetting that it is quite amazing how it can affect us, teach us, and even change our fundamental state of being.