The Music Instinct: Science and Song

The Music Instinct: Science and SongThe Music Instinct: Science and Song provides a ground-breaking exploration into how and why the human organism and the whole ebb and flow of the cosmos is moved by the undeniable effect of music.

This follows visionary researchers and accomplished musicians to the crossroads of science and culture in search of answers to music s deep mysteries.

This is a comprehensive look at how the brain reacts in performance, just listening, atonal music, the sensory reactions from person to person, instrument, voices to others .

The mic and camera into the uterus of a pregnant woman showing the baby smiling and hearing the music. All subjects confirming what music makers have always believed - we are hardwired to appreciate and perform music with the cortex of the brain showing white hot light in the MRI - the brain on music.

Very exciting program and all the more sad and depressing when it also shows the importance to our childrens' education in all subjects when they learn to play music before the age of 10 and we have cut music and art as non essential subjects.

Watch the full documentary now

Ratings: 8.59/10 from 17 users.
  • Guest

    I suppose when as a baby, you take your first breath of air, you are by nature free to be a musician, an artist, a scientist, a cosmologist, a healer, a danser, a grower, a writer..... Your energy has all potential.
    You can also be a lawyer, a politician, a banker, a pope......Your energy has all potential.
    On one side, your life makes you participate in the energetic wave of people, in the other you are trying to control it....and then there's all the in-between.

  • Nick Arrizza

    Too much attention has been focused on the brain as the receptive organ for music. In fact it is the human Heart that is the resonating organ. Studies of heart rate variability and different types of music show that some types of music are "life affirming" whereas others are stressful. This suggests that our Hearts (and what I refer to as our Life Force Energy) are specifically tuned to certain life giving frequencies/harmonies.

  • tomregit

    I wonder Az,....As a young man I was a pretty good athlete, but a terrible dancer. It always seemed to me that they both require a certain amount of rhythm, timing, and grace. However, even when I realized girls liked a guy who could dance, no amount athleticism ever translated into any improvement in my clomping around the dance floor. I love many genres of music, especially, classical, jazz, and blues. However I struggle with learning any instrument, which probably means I lack a deep appreciation of music. I believe I sound pretty good in the shower, but have been told too many times that I possess one of the worst singing voices ever! It's how I first learned the word "caterwaul".

    I'm not saying you're wrong, but, sadly,I don't think my potential in music was ever very great. I still enjoyed the doc. Your comments are often insightful and always fun to read.

  • Achems_Razor

    The whole universe has harmony, we are here because of one note, a vibration, (string theory).
    Pythagoras is credited with saying, "There is geometry in the humming of the strings. There is music in the spacing of the spheres."

    Visualized by Johannes Kepler's 1619 treatise, "the harmony of the spheres" the musical interpretation of the motion of the planetary orbits as based on his calculations of scales of minimum and maximum of the concentric orbits, and the velocities of the six planets they knew of at that time.

    Music/harmony is inherent in each of us. It is a universal musical construct.

  • StillRV

    I like what you are saying here in a philosophical sense. But all you have to do is watch some PET scan recordings of brain activity while listening to music. It is like a Pink Floyed concert in our heads. The mind is so receptive to complex sound waves it easily accounts for those physiological reactions. But as I said it is very cool that you are in touch with your whole body like that, It makes the overall experience of music that much more intense.
    @ epic. Thanks to that link I think I may know where it is you thought you may have seen me before. Though my SN there is quite different it would be wild that you caught a glimpse of my "mental expulsive" writing style. LOL

  • StillRV

    I believe I saw that one as well. Also the doc about the musical properties of the hydrogen bond I/E water. Not entirely backed by everyone who has weighed in on the subject but many have agreed that there is sufficient evidence of a correlation between vibration and water purity. And since we are composed mostly of water those molecular effects would happen within us as well.

  • Brendan Kelly

    I agree that the heart is the resonating organ however the connection between the heart and mind is a two way loop so we get feedback in the heart from the brain and feedback in the brain from the heart ,just another part of that wonderful symphony we call existence.

  • Achems_Razor

    I suppose you are referring to Dr Masara Emoto, and his purity of water thing, I don't seem to really believe in his theory's, actually the purest water is distilled water which shows up in his experiments as disjointed, unstructured. To get the symmetry that he refers to as pure water as in his pictures, say symmetrically structured as a snowflake, has to have an impurity to bond to h2o to make those type of structures.

  • StillRV

    Very true, I am not testifying to that aspect of the findings. I should have mentioned the bonds and structure more and left out the purity aspect. More so I was referring to the frequency and resonance aspect of the study as it pertains to this doc. Even if Mr.Emotos findings on the purity are debunked his evidence of resonance is very cool.

  • Guest

    That's because they expected you to dance like them.
    Your potential in music was injured.
    The beat is in all of us and it can't be stopped other than by our death....and even then...don't know!
    Wonder while you wander...make the road more pleasant!

  • Barzee

    I dont like that black guy, the music composer/singer his head is so far up his hole its unreal

  • geamala

    that sounds nice but your brain regulates your heart rate...

  • bluscious

    'the black guy" is Bobby Mcferrin ...a world wide recognized and respected musician and composer!!!??? He's speaking from is heart,in non-tech terms to be more relate-able is all.Either your new to music or just new in general.... either way, welcome! to the world of people passionate about music ;)
    (Sometimes listening is far better than blurting out your personal opinion about someone else's 'hole' and what u think they managed to put up it, that's not really pertaining to the above video,because it makes you look racist and small minded.....just a thought.)

  • ken shaw

    wow...what an eye opener...i love house music and going out and listening to a good dj who takes you on a trip and i often get someone to ask me where did you learn how to dance like that and i tell them i just let the music take over...not until right now do i really understand what that means.

  • Simon Heather

    Congratulations on your documentary! The College of Sound Healing is a UK based organisation which is raising awareness of the healing power of sound.

    I have just written a book called 'The Healing Power of Music'.

  • Timothy Robert Church

    @Barzee: Don't worry, be happy.

  • Rosario Bellassai

    Enjoyed the documentary!

  • Guest

    Here is a little game:
    Using only song titles from one artist, answer these questions
    Are you male or female: EVERY BODY KNOWS
    Describe yourself: BIRD ON A WIRE
    How do you feel: LIGHT AS A BREEZE
    Describe where you currently live: PASSING THROUGH... in the... LAND OF PLENTY (2 songs)
    If you could go anywhere now, where would you go: FIRST WE TAKE MANHATTAN
    Your favourite form of transportation: THE FUTURE
    Your best friend: THE GYPSY'S WIFE
    You and your best friend: SISTERS OF MERCY
    What's the weather like: TONIGHT WILL BE FINE
    If your life was a TV show, what would it be called: UN CANADIAN ERRANT
    What is life to you: HALLELUJAH
    Your relationship: DANCE ME TO THE END OF LIFE
    Your fear: THERE IS A WAR
    What is the best advice you have to give: BE FOR REAL
    Where do you work: IN MY SECRET LIFE
    How would you like to die: HEY, THAT'S NO WAY TO SAY GOODBYE

    @Valtko? is this too personal? Too facebookish?

  • Bob Bobert

    What is that piece 4 mins in? please :)

  • Yngsatchvai .

    Sonata No. 23 in F minor Op. 57 "Appassionata" 1st movement

    Beethoven. You really need to check out the 1st 2nd and 3rd movments. they are all amazing! The video clip the showed is from a concert from Daniel Barenboim live from Berlin, 2006.

    check out Sonata No. 8 Op. 13 (Pathetique)
    and Moonlight all movements there are 3.

  • Bob Bobert

    Thanks late reply cause I don't ues this much. Il give it a listen. Very lovely music indeed!