Prof. em. Dr. med. Eckart Altenmüller
Singing and instrumental music have played an important role in all cultures for decades: music is used to generate powerful emotions, deepen and organize social bonds and even achieve therapeutic goals. Music combines magical elements, ancient collective experiences and highly vibrant qualities full of new sounds. Our emotions when listening to music depend heavily on learning processes and can be deepened through knowledge and familiarity. Strong emotions that lead to a "goosebumps experience" occur more frequently, for example, when musical structural parameters are recognized. Surprising moments that violate musical expectations are particularly effective, but information about the background of a composition can also deepen the effect.
The lecture will present evolutionary, music-psychological and brain-physiological findings on the effects of music-making on children, senior citizens and people with neurological diseases. The brain-physiological basis of music-making will be explained using examples and a link will be made to the history of human development and the role of music in the "fight for survival". We could certainly survive without music, but not nearly as well!
