A soulful singer and an expressive guitarist really are more tapped into their feelings than the rest of us. New research shows that people with musical training are better at reading emotion in sound.
In fact, the more years of musical experience people have, and the younger they began their music training, the better their nervous system is at processing emotions in sound.Neuroscientists asked 30 people to watch a subtitled nature film while listening to a 250-millisecond clip of a distressed baby’s cry.
Using scalp electrodes, the researchers measured how sensitive the people were to the sound, especially the more complicated part that communicates emotional content.
The scientists found that the musicians were able to hone in directly to the emotional aspect of the sound, while non- musicians weren't able to compartmentalize the sound as easily..
