FEATURE: Hippocampus Unanimous: How the Way Music and Memory Interacts Mean We Are Mixing Modern Fascination with Fond Remembrance

FEATURE:

 

Hippocampus Unanimous

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 ALL PHOTOS (unless credited otherwise): Unsplash 

How the Way Music and Memory Interacts Mean We Are Mixing Modern Fascination with Fond Remembrance

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A recent survey suggests we are all…

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still gravitating towards established and well-known music. Artists like Ed Sheeran and Kendrick Lamar are huge on streaming sites but it seems, when we want that reliable and sensational musical hit, we are reverting back to the songs ingrained in the mind. I will bring an article into play soon but, right now, I have been thinking about memory and how and why certain songs remain in the mind. I must admit; even though I spend most of my waking live reviewing and interviewing new artists: the music I listen to most if older sounds. I always play songs that hold dear memories or have something special about them. That is not to say new music is worse or less affecting than classic music: we all retain those songs that soundtracked our best days or helped us through bad times. I have written about music and memory before – and the role of nostalgia – but it seems, when music is at its heaviest and most full; we are still remembering and proffering songs that have scored important moments and helped us through childhood. For me; my chest of memories seems to start in the late-1980s and runs through to the early-'00s. I tend to find those memories and emotions that come flooding back are more powerful to the ones that come from newer music.

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Because the music is fresh and has not had time to settle in my mind; I go to older music because I know it is able to elicit the effect I require. There is a name for this phenomenon – as this article - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-43995542 - explains:

Research shows that the music of your teenage years is hard-wired into your brain.

There's even something called the "reminiscence bump" - which shows children have superior recognition for songs that date to their parents' and grandparents' teenage years.

And while streaming services fight each other for exclusive new releases, Spotify's own research shows that 40% of songs are streamed more frequently in their second year on the service than their first.

This week, the BPI released data on the "oldies" we played 2017 - showing that songs like TLC's No Scrubs, Toto's Africa and The Temptations' My Girl are still receiving millions of streams.

"Older songs are quietly accounting for a very significant proportion of listening," says BPI analyst Rob Crutchley, who calculates that 30% of the music played on streaming services was released before 2010”.

It is interesting discovering such a large percentage of music played on streaming services was released before 2010. It might not be a shock because the vast majority of music released came before that year. I think there are other reasons why we prefer a good slice of TLC as opposed the latest cut from Young Fathers.

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IN THIS PHOTO: TLC/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images

It is great to get that new music to the ears and find something original and unexpected. It does what it needs to do but, when the song(s) have bled into the mind and resonated; they tend to pass through as we are exposed to the next batch of artists. The older songs – and the most-streamed of the past few decades – have stuck because of a physical and simple nature. There was less music back in the 1990s and we bought a lot more physical releases. There is a power when we think back to how we purchased and consumed music. It is harder to remember songs now because we are listening through the Internet and exposed to so many different options. That is not to suggest things now are in a worse state: the artists we have are pushing boundaries and there are some tremendous creations coming through. It has been speculated people of a certain age have better memories and find it easier to hold close songs from years ago. That memory subject divides my opinions. Maybe people of my age (in their thirties) have strong memories and we are able to remember further back and those songs we were exposed to as children. My parents’ music taste seems to be more rooted in what they grew up around. I feel, as new generations come along, memories will shorten and we will start to close that gap – listening to more music from the present and not investigating that far back.

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I do not think there is anything to worry about for new artists. It is hard to soak in everything that is thrown at us. Music is at its most popular and interesting right now. Whilst we may not stream the same songs multiple times – or keep them in mind years from now – we are more daring and bold with our tastes. The buffet of music is out there and we have the option to hear music from all around the world. Good memory at the physicality of music has been replaced with limitless options and a much wider and deeper palette. The part of the brain that stores memories is more intriguing than any other (part of the brain). We might forget what we did earlier in the day but can, at the drop of a note, remember when we first heard that song and the people who were there. It is no surprise the songs we grew up around are lodged firmly in the memory and we can recall them whenever we need. One can quibble regarding quality – music was better and more impactful then – but the argument is more complex. We cannot truly say whether older music is more popular and demanded than new stuff. There is more music from the past but the streaming figures for the biggest artists of today are immense.

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I feel there is a nice balance between the bygone tracks that have established their worth and the bigger, new stuff we have before us today. The fact we are coming back to studied we heard the year before and things are not connecting right away raises questions about modern music and how it takes longer to sink in – given all the competition and availability we have. What comes out of this is how important memory is and how, in an age of streaming, we are still holding onto less-than-new stuff. I wonder how new generations will digest music and whether the dynamics will change. Will we see the music of now overtakes artists from the 1970s, for example, as a preference? Another issue is a generational divide and how our parents and grandparents are not as intrigued by streaming as their children. Spotify and other platforms still find a greater audience from those who are more au fait with technology and grew up with the Internet. This is one of those topics that fascinates me and is vital when it comes to understanding who listens to what music and how memory and sound entwine. That hippocampus importance and how good memory not only affects how we retain music from the past but explore more from the present – I can see this trend impacting listening figures and tastes in years to come. It is important to keep those classics aflame but we must not forget about the current market who are pushing the industry forward and, let’s hope, forming wonderful memories for…

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THE young of today.