The premise that music is something universally used by humans is not new. According to scientists, this research is the first time it has been systematically proven that music has the same applications everywhere in the world.
The scientists concluded that dance music, as an expression of love, to lull children to sleep or for healing, exists in all 315 cultures. This concerns songs with and without singing, from regions in all directions, from Scotland to Polynesia or Ghana.
Scientists were also finally able to predict, based on characteristics of the music, such as tempo and pitch, whether a song was intended for dancing or a declaration of love for someone, for example.
Click here to listen to various audio recordings.
The performance of the music is fundamentally different
Although music occurs everywhere in similar ways, there are differences in the performance of songs. For example, numbers vary in complexity. Melodies, for example, can be very complex or simple.
For example, the audio files show the song “Healing” being sung in a supposed male voice, with a single instrument. Another healing song is performed with drums, flutes and various voices.
A dance song from northeastern Siberia is mainly quiet, while a similar song from Brazil is much faster.
Each song is measured by three criteria
Numbers vary in complexity and are used in at least fourteen different ways. Scientists evaluated the music using three different criteria. These measures are: the extent to which the song is used on official occasions, the extent to which the song is used religiously, and the extent to which the music is exciting.
For example, a song can be sung to a large audience, without religious intentions, at a high tempo and in different voices.
The research was divided into two parts: theoretical research into the background of music in different cultures and a description of performances, in addition to analysis of dozens of audio recordings of healing music, love music, sleep music, and dancing.
