Memory and Musical Experience

Source: Ri Butov/Pixabay

Music has a remarkable ability to evoke powerful memories and emotions. When we listen to a piece of music from years ago, we seem to travel back to that moment. Music can act as a direct line to our younger selves. We can feel everything as if we were there (Belfi & Jakubowski, 2021). Following is a list of key factors that enable music to call up vivid memories and provoke strong emotions.

1. Conditioning. Conditioning simply requires the pairing of two stimuli. When a piece of music is paired with a very emotional event, it can be an effective cue to bring back the emotion that was felt at that moment. Music may require multiple exposures to evoke memories. For example, the sound of disco music (e.g., "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor) may act as a unique cue unlocking all the experiences associated with the memory of that song (its time and place). Associations with past personal events may further increase the emotional experience. The feeling is not in the music but in what it reminds us. Maybe we have just come to hear a particular song as sad because we have learned to associate it with an experience of loss.
2. Music and nostalgic memory. Music is a prevalent and influential source of nostalgia, a reminder of valued past experiences. Research shows that listening to nostalgia provides several psychological benefits such as fostering social connectedness and inspiring a sense of youthfulness (Sedikides, 2021). For example, listening to the music of your grandmother reminds one of family and simpler times. Christmas music invokes happy memories of childhood. It is a way to reconnect with one’s past self.
3. The power of the reminiscence bump. The “reminiscence bump” is a concept used to describe enhanced memory for events that occur during adolescence and early adulthood (Jakubowski et al., 2021). As adults, we tend to be nostalgic for the music we heard during our teen years. Our teenage years and 20s are especially important and exciting times in our lives, as we experience things for the first time. Those years are times of self-discovery and identity formation. These reminiscence bumps (the periods of youth and adolescence) are also important for the formation of musical preferences. People tend to become less open to new experiences as they age. However, musical taste can change through repeated exposure to music of different cultures and styles.
4. Musical memory. People who suffer from memory loss still demonstrate lasting memories of music. Despite profound memory loss and even a loss of knowledge about who they are, individuals with dementia often show a remarkable memory for music. Research shows that self-selected music can trigger positive memories they might otherwise struggle to recall (Leggieri, 2019). So music can help to unlock nonmusical memories and promote communication in older adults with Alzheimer’s disease.

In sum, music can act as a cue for invoking memories. Emotion and memory are intimately related. Listening to music can bring back vivid memories from one’s past. Listening to a certain song can take you back to the feelings associated with that memory.