# Physical/Physiological effects of music



## violadude (May 2, 2011)

I'm in a thread creating mood today. 

During the most passionate and exciting parts of music, or just when you really get into the music in general, what are some physical responses (if any) your body has?

I don't know if anyone else experiences this, but when I come to a particularly moving passage of music the top of my head gets a tingling sensation and my eyes get kind of squinty. Also, my mouth hangs open like an idiot. >.<


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## Curiosity (Jul 10, 2011)

During a particularly emotional passage I'll often get teary eyed, feel a cold chill down my neck and upper back, and involuntarily throw my hands into the air for some air-conducting.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

I get a sensation that my head is being squeezed, the cold chills (and goosebumps) Curiosity describes, my vision can blur a bit, and I can start to sweat.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Curiosity said:


> During a particularly passage I'll often get teary eyed, feel a cold chill down my neck and upper back, and involuntarily throw my hands into the air for some air-conducting.


Oh yes, the air conducting. I do that as well.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

Oh, and when listening to opera I often mouth and enact either in my mind or around the room (after checking the door is locked) the most interesting part being sung at any one point (often the lead soprano, fun stuff).


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## regressivetransphobe (May 16, 2011)

When listening to Haydn's symphonies, I sometimes begin punching myself in the face, and my other arm reaches for the power button. It's quite a curious physiological response.


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Mine are far too graphic and unsettling to describe.


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

When I hear Mozart, I lay down and go to sleep.


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## kv466 (May 18, 2011)

I tend to breathe slowly and fill my lungs with air while my eyes close and yes,...perhaps a bit of air conducting.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

Polednice said:


> Mine are far too graphic and unsettling to describe.


Oh. Oh I see.


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## tdc (Jan 17, 2011)

When I'm really into a piece I'll get goosebumps. I may get a little tear well up in my eye as well. Depending on my mood and whether or not anyone else is around this may escalate to an episode of extreme volume increase on my stereo and eccentric behavior characterized by pacing, hand gestures, air conducting etc...


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

Almost all classical listeners that I see remain very stationary in their seats. I often feel like moving and swaying with the music. And yes, air conducting (although I have no idea what I'm doing) happens as well.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

violadude said:


> Oh yes, the air conducting. I do that as well.


A friend of mine used to hold his lit cigarette by the tip of the filter and flail away.
I got a kick out of that!


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## Kopachris (May 31, 2010)

Yup. Air conducting. I also get the urge to thrash around on the floor whenever I hear Schoenberg's music, though I usually keep that reaction under control.


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Couchie said:


> Oh. Oh I see.


Yes, exactly...



Klavierspieler said:


> When I hear Mozart, I lay down and go to sleep.


When I hear Bach, I slip into a coma.

Conversely, when I wake up from general anaesthetic, I hear Schubert!


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## Fsharpmajor (Dec 14, 2008)

Polednice said:


> Mine are far too graphic and unsettling to describe.


I think we need to strap you to a chair, attach a few electrodes, and subject you to some Brahms. 

Anyway, I tend to get erection of the hair on my forearms and the back of my neck, but not erection of, well, you know.


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## regressivetransphobe (May 16, 2011)

Klavierspieler said:


> When I hear Mozart, I lay down and go to sleep.





Kopachris said:


> Yup. Air conducting. I also get the urge to thrash around on the floor whenever I hear Schoenberg's music, though I usually keep that reaction under control.





Polednice said:


> When I hear Bach, I slip into a coma.
> 
> Conversely, when I wake up from general anaesthetic, I hear Schubert!


I honestly didn't mean to turn this into another "creatively bash composers" thread. Sorry y'all


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Fsharpmajor said:


> Anyway, I tend to get erection of the hair on my forearms and the back of my neck, but not erection of, well, you know.


IT'S TOO LATE! I read the sixth word and paused - terrified by the image immediately planted in my mind!


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## hawk (Oct 1, 2007)

If you happen to observe my response to exciting passionate music you will see me twitching in what looks like an involuntary manner. When my wife and daughters first saw this they thought I may be having a bad reaction to something I ate...
You folks who are air conductors might understand that the twitching that my body does is actually me playing every instrument in the orchestra AND conducting!


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

When I listen to some types of avant-garde pieces, I vomit. 

Ah well, it seems there were many jocular responses above anyway.


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## Kopachris (May 31, 2010)

Also, if I'm not air-conducting, I'm almost always tapping a finger or a foot with the music. If I'm not doing that, then I'm tapping my teeth with the music. I have to be tapping something, though.


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## Llyranor (Dec 20, 2010)

I won't air-conduct, but I *will* play air-violin. Mainly just the left fingers, though. Sometimes subtly when in public.


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

HarpsichordConcerto said:


> When I listen to some types of avant-garde pieces, I vomit.
> 
> Ah well, it seems there were many jocular responses above anyway.


Yes, we were having lots of fun making jibes, and then you had to come along and be deadly sincere, spoiling everything!


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

regressivetransphobe said:


> I honestly didn't mean to turn this into another "creatively bash composers" thread. Sorry y'all


You're too late. Anyway, we're enjoying ourselves.


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## Fsharpmajor (Dec 14, 2008)

Polednice said:


> IT'S TOO LATE! I read the sixth word and paused - terrified by the image immediately planted in my mind!


I'm not sure for how long a 'what classical music gives you a big boner?' thread would be able to escape the attention of the moderators.

Don't know, don't want to find out.


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## Polednice (Sep 13, 2009)

Fsharpmajor said:


> I'm not sure for how long a 'what classical music gives you a big boner?' thread would be able to escape the attention of the moderators.
> 
> Don't know, don't want to find out.


But it is a NECESSARY conversation. It's a HUUUUGE part of my life.


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

regressivetransphobe said:


> When listening to Haydn's symphonies, I sometimes begin punching myself in the face, and my other arm reaches for the power button. It's quite a curious physiological response.


Why do so many people like this post!?! Explain yourselves!


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## Fsharpmajor (Dec 14, 2008)

Polednice said:


> But it is a NECESSARY conversation. It's a HUUUUGE part of my life.


Classical music is *pure* and *chaste*.

Alexander Scriabin's _Poem of Ecstasy_, although it been interpreted otherwise by people with dirty minds, is actually about the in-and-out motion of the newly invented Singer sewing machine.


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## Kopachris (May 31, 2010)

Fsharpmajor said:


> Classical music is *pure* and *chaste*.
> 
> Alexander Scriabin's _Poem of Ecstasy_, although it been interpreted otherwise by people with dirty minds, is actually about the in-and-out motion of the newly invented Singer sewing machine.


Let's not forget Mozart's "Leck mich im Arsch" and "Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber". Those aren't dirty _at all_.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Apart from the usual things - eg. air-conducting - top heavy reactions like tingling of my spine or crying are rare. Depends on the piece, the mood I'm in, whether I'm alone or not, etc. & of course, there is music that is just for fun, which puts me in a good mood or frame of mind. Then there's stuff that is kind of neutral or more subtle, not so full-on either way. I like these ambigious things as well.

But as far as some people's composer-bashing around here is concerned it frankly makes me think these things are getting old and stale now, can we move on, people? & secondly it often makes me wonder why I'm part of this forum in the first place. I left another forum where composer/musician/forum member bashing was turned into a form of high art. Happened on a daily basis. If you thought conceptual art is total wankery, you should read what happened there. So I guess what goes on here at TC is comparatively innocent, but it's becoming a bit repetitive now (far worse, it seems, than that John Cage piece that goes on for eternity :lol: , at least that's just a concept, not "real," but these jokes are "real" although not much to do with "reality")...


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## samurai (Apr 22, 2011)

@ Sid, Please don't leave!


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## Lukecash12 (Sep 21, 2009)

My heart rate goes down, I feel a pit in my stomach, and I get tunnel vision. When I lived with my family, they had a hard time with my strange living habits, and couldn't get me to share many meals with them, considering that I slept much less than them and my eating and activity habits were constantly cycling. You see, they did a study with a scientist in the 80's tailored to finding the best sleeping pattern for a scholar, and he was sent underground and surveyed for a couple of months. It turned out that his sleeping pattern leveled out to 21 hours of activity, and then 7-9 hours of sleep. He said that he had never felt more motivated in his work, and could spend a great portion of his time awake on his work.

So, instead of jumping and jiving about on the inside like I can see a lot of people do here, what with Polednice basically exploding into pink mist onto his book collection, I'd have to say that music kind of puts me into a dormancy trance physically. I'm definitely no Bunin, that's for sure, what with his bodily ecstasy at the piano, and I couldn't even concentrate if I behaved like Lang Lang.


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

Sid James said:


> ... (far worse, it seems, than that John Cage piece that goes on for eternity :lol: , at least that's just a concept, not "real," but these jokes are "real" although not much to do with "reality")...


Reality? What's that?


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## samurai (Apr 22, 2011)

Klavierspieler said:


> Reality? What's that?


After reading a lot of Philip K. Dick--and also seeing the movies *A Scanner Darkly and Blade Runner, *which are based on his writing--I must say that your comment/question is not so "far out" at that!


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

samurai said:


> @ Sid, Please don't leave!


No, I won't leave, I quite like this forum. I was merely pointing out that how some members - whom I otherwise respect for insight into their area/s or niche/s of classical music - continue to trundle out John Cage/Xenakis/Stockhausen/etc. "jokes" that are way past their use-by date. But maybe I should just ignore them, it's a good idea not to "feed the flames." & notice how the Black Sabbath references/jibes are gone, now that member Argus has kind of left the building?...


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