While music can remind someone of a first kiss, a favorite movie or a forgotten childhood moment, scientists have hard data that proves our brains hold memories that can be triggered by our senses--especially by sound and music. By studying brain waves, scientists can understand visually exactly how music affects our memories, moods and thought patterns. An experiment conducted at the University of California showed higher brain activity when test subjects listened to music that held an emotional relevance to them than when they listened to music that held no significance to their past.
One of the greatest examples of how music can trigger memories is through commercial jingles. It doesn't matter if audiences enjoy commercial jingles; they have proven to be effective. Many jingles incorporate phone numbers or other important information embedded into their tunes to force consumers to remember specific information. If a consumer can remember a carpet installer's phone number simply by remembering a commercial they saw on television, it gives that vendor a competitive edge.
Soundtracks that accompany movies and, more recently, television shows, create a special memory between the viewer and the story line. When someone hears the song, "My Heart Will Go On," played on the radio, she thinks of the movie "Titanic." She might also think back to the time she heard this on the radio when she was on a date with her boyfriend or as she was singing it at the top of her lungs with her best friend as they drove back home from the mall. She will associate all those memories together, to make one "super" memory that will still always remind her of the movie "Titanic."
Many people can remember the exact place they were when they first heard the song "Let it Be." In fact, the music of the Beatles has spanned so many decades and generations that the music has been chosen to be used in a study based on the effects music has on the memory. In 2008, the British Association Festival of Science showcased a study of the effect that the Beatles' music has had on people, young and old. The study is appropriately called "The Magical Memory Tour."
Children's television shows are notorious for teaching memorization through music. Shows like "Sesame Street," "Mister Rogers" and "Barney," all teach memorization lessons through rhythm and rhyming. Pre-schoolers are taught the English alphabet by learning the "A-B-C Song."
Studies have also shown that the power of music recognition can even triumph over patients with Alzheimer's disease. "What's striking is that the pre-frontal cortex is among the last [brain regions] to atrophy," says cognitive neuro-scientist, Petr Janata. Alzheimer's patients have been known to recognize certain music and songs even when they have been unable to recall other memories. While music cannot reverse the effects of Alzheimer's, Janata believes it can bring patients happiness and enhance the quality of their lives.