Chapter Six

The Role of Emotion in Musical Experience

Having established how music, and specifically certain harmonies carry emotion for us, we might ask how this affects our experience of music. Upon hearing a piece of music we might understand the implied emotion the music is expressing, even mirror or feel emotion towards it ourselves, but what do we gain from this? What benefit does this give us? And why is having emotional experiences in music meaningful for us in the short, or long term? 

Juslin states that the experience of emotions during listening to music is one of the primary reasons why people engage with it. It is widely acknowledged that music is expressive of its own emotions and can portray this, but, the question still stands whether or not music elicits “felt” emotions in us. He suggests that the general population would describe their emotions as being experiential and sensational in nature, however in studies which have been conducted and theories which have been suggested, researchers generally determine emotional state by measuring our physiological responses: our heart rate, areas of brain activation, whether we cry or laugh for instance, or if music can alter our impression of events or situations, even for a brief time(86).

Gabrielsson agrees with this view, and suggests that music experiences affect us physically, behaviourally, developmentally and emotionally, to name a few ways. Such, emotion is only one element to music, and there can be much more to gain from the overall experience than only elicitation of emotion. However, where emotions are present, as sometimes emotion may not come in to play at all, they can increase the meaning of an experience for us, and an event becomes much more memorable where emotions in music are interconnected, as this experience is personal to us, and can become autobiographical. However, aside from the personal significance that music can hold for us through emotions, emotion is not unique to music, and musical experiences are made unique though other facets in music, such as structure, harmony, form and dynamic changes over time(87).

To establish if there is a connection between emotional involvement and experience, and musical elements, the esteemed conductor Herbert von Karajan took part in an experiment conducted by Harrer to measure his heart rate whilst he conducted Beethoven’s Leonore Overture 3. It was found that his heart rate at certain points was double that at which he started; peaking at 150bpm. Interestingly, the times at which his heart rate was the fastest were during the same passages which he had previous to the experiment, spoken about being the most emotionally impactful to him. Additionally, when he was playing the recording in a secondary part to the experiment, his heart rate also increased at the same points, although significantly less high than when he was conducting the piece. This study shows that music can be most emotionally impactful when we are actively involved in its creation, although its physiological effects are still significant even upon listening(88). 

Aside from heart- rate changes, respiration rate can also be an indicator of emotional change, or a powerful emotional experience. Breathing and heart- rate are normally strongly linked, and feedback from one should influence a change in the other(89). 

Ries reported strong correlations between emotional response to music, respiration rate and amplitude, and musical liking. It was found that where emotional response occurred, emotional valence increased, as did the amplitude and frequency of breath(90). It was therefore concluded that respiration was an indicator for emotional response, however results are hard to distinguish using this method of data collection alone, as many environmental and individual factors come into play(91). 

Additionally, an important point to note comes from a study conducted by Slobada. In this particular study, a selected group of adults were asked to remember memories or events in their lives where music had been present. Emotions were not specifically asked about to eliminate any demand characteristics, and participants described 39% of the experiences as having an emotional content, or resulting in an emotive response in some way. The participants were also asked to describe their prominent reasons for listening to music, and two leading themes arose; people use music as a modifier to adjust or develop their emotional state, or alternatively, people used music as a catalyst to intensify and release emotions they already felt(92). These findings lead Slobada to suggest that music does not create emotion in us by itself, rather, music grants us permission and access to experience emotions which are already within us. 

Following, Maslow suggested that people can experience what he called a “peak experiences” in response to intense emotional experiences, and these can be incredibly influential to the person(93). Slobada found that children who have these positive “peak experiences” are further motivated to continue performing and engaging with music, as children in particular are very receptive to rewards as motivation for continuing progress. It is therefore important to have these positive peak experiences, as they determine whether the child continues and is motivated to continue engaging with music. It is possible to experience these emotional peak experiences through both observing and participating in music, but additionally, the physical and social context of the experience is an equally important factor in future motivation(94). 

When these emotional peak states occur within a performance, a “flow state” can be experienced, this occurs when a person is highly engaged in a performance, they have a lessened sense of self consciousness, and a heightened sense of awareness and attention for the music they are about to play, and often lose awareness of time passing(95). A flow state is also more likely to happen when there is an equilibrium between the capability of the performer and the difficulty of the music. If a performer finds a piece technically unchallenging, they are likely to become bored, contrastingly, if the music is too difficult then this is likely to lead to nervousness and reduced motivation and willingness to perform. Additionally, performances held for an audience increases the intensity of both “peak experiences” emotionally, and also the likelihood of experiencing a flow state, and therefore emotional reward(96). This emotional pay- off in response to positive experiences performing has been suggested to be the reason continues engaging in music and even continues so far as to make it their career. However, there is still something to be said for the type of “loving play” which Booth characterises as an aspect of a “true performer”. This type of performance and the commitment to it increases the enjoyment and therefore quality of life for the performer, and is still something which despite the differences in technical and virtuosic differences and emotional expression capable of being produced, can be experienced by an amateur musician and sometimes not professional musicians, as it is the love of it and sense of achievement which creates the value(97). Following, Davidson proposes that it is a profound emotional relationship with music which builds the basis from which a person can go on to enjoy a deep- rooted passion for music(98).

Another role which emotion plays in our experience of music, is that of the “chill experience”. It is a physiological occurrence which many people experience while listening to music, in particular live music, and there are many different theories as to why it is that we encounter this phenomenon in response to certain triggers within pieces of music.

Poizat looked at the occurrence of  ‘jouissance’ which he described as “a euphoria, exhilaration or fulfilment accompanied by tears and chills” which were experienced by members of an audience of an opera. He theorised that the audience would experience ‘jouissance’ at the point where language fades away and the meaning of the text disperses so that the music is no longerheld down by verbal definition. He also noted that some listeners even cried when a singer held a note for seemingly impossible lengths of time. he suggested an explanation for this in that the audience is sensitive to when the notes sung by a singer disconnects from the language, despite knowing that the voice and language are intrinsically linked and the voice can never truly be free from meaning(99). 

Additionally, for chills to be experienced consistently, the emotion expressed is meaningful as to whether it results in this phenomenon. Elements such as the music being “bitter- sweet”, sad, or melancholic are features which can reliably produce chills whilst fundamentally “happy” music alone would not necessarily produce this response. The probability of a chill response which occurs during joyful music is more likely to be as a result of when there is a link between the joy and sadness, resulting in a bitter- sweetness(100). Levinson is in agreeance with this. He states that a fundamental element of the chill experience is the affecting nature of the expression. He continues to say that our lives are diverse in their nature, and contrasts in emotion are necessary to understand the importance, meaning and intensity of each contrasting and correlating emotion(101). 

Alternatively, Panksepp also forwards a theory which could be behind this phenomenon. He suggests that the chill experience could arise from triggered instinctive associations which can be made with social loss, especially with separation calls found in nature. These separation calls are used by animals, and us during or evolution, to communicate with other members of their group with whom they have strong social bonds, and are designed for example, so that a child can locate and reunite with their mother if it becomes lost, and provoke a sense of urgency and care- giving response from the parent. The ‘coldness’ of the chill response could serve to generate a heightened impulse for a social reunion and which in turn reduces the fear of being lost and without the family support. Panksepp also suggests that the specific chills we encounter during bitter- sweet music arise due to this particular music activating the ancient emotional circuits within our brains, which are strongly tied to or internal intrinsic values and emotions. Sad music may therefore sometimes achieve its beauty and subsequent chill effect through its contrast; (as mentioned earlier by Levinson) a musical contrast encompassing loss with the longing for resolution and reconciliation(102).

Evidence from studies conducted by Panksepp and Slobada show, both the prevalence of and the existence of shivers or “chills” experienced by participants whilst listening to emotive music. This phenomenon was discussed in Solbada’s study in 1991 where he found a large number of his participants had this experience during listening to music of their choice, and that presented to them. During one particular piece his 14 participants on average experienced 4.4 chills per minute(103). At a later date, Grewe repeated this study but found vastly differing results. When listening to the same piece of music- “Making Love out of Nothing At All” in this study produced an average of only 1.1 chills per minute, and less that 10% of participants experienced these chills at all. Grewe consequently concluded that the experience of the chill response weren’t directly related to the music, but instead a response created and coordinated by the waysin which listeners allowed or even used music to experience or alter their emotions intentionally(104). Additionally, many other environmental and individual factors may have played a part in the production and frequency of experiencing chills, for instance the temperature of the room; the lower the temperature the greater the chance of emotional cues being physiologically processed alongside physical cues, resulting in a greater frequency. Additionally, the emotional state each individual person may be experiencing initially may influence their susceptibility towards a chill experience being initiated. As mentioned earlier, the order in which emotions are experienced within a piece of music coordinates our emotions as we follow the musical storyline throughout, that which precedes and succeeds a musical event alters our emotional state as we follow this, and the same can be said for our emotional storyline in real life.

So, musical emotion has an important part to play not just in heightening our experience at the time and making the experience more enjoyable, but it is important due to its abilities to be an agent for change. We have emotions within us, and music, being a catalyst for their activation, can move us from a state of tension, to a more desired one we remember of relaxation, much as music itself does. As I discussed earlier, evaluative conditioning is a function whereby we unconsciously experience emotions due to a learned association with that emotion and a specific piece of music. But how does this happen? And does music have any other effects for our memory?

86- Deliège, Davidson, Sloboda, 2011

87- Juslin, Västfjäll, 2008b

88- Harrer, 1977

89- Frijda, 1998

90- Ries, 1969

91- Harrer, 1997

92- Slobada, 1992

93- Maslow, 1968

94- Juslin, Slobada, 2012

95- Wilder, Csikszentmihalyi, 1989

96- Bailey, Davidson, 2005

97- Booth, 1999

98- Davidson, 2002

99- Poizat, 1992

100- Panksepp, 1995

101- Levinson, 2004

102- Panksepp, 1995

103- Panksepp, 1995

104- Grewe, 2007