Negative Music and the Effects on Human Behavior :: essays research papers

I have chosen to write about negative music and its effect on human behavior. I will trace the history of this type of music and discuss some studies which point out effects of listening to it. What is negative music? Negative music is music that has a negative effect. One form of negative music is music that is used to express or to stimulate negative emotions. A Viennese classical composer named Arnold Schonberg was the first person to openly create negative music early in the twentieth century. His music was rejected by European concert attendees of the time and sometimes caused near riots. Based on discords, Schoenberg's music caused listeners to feel uncomfortable and irritated. However, he became the pivotal composer of the early twentieth century and today he is considered one of the greatest composers of that century. The music ushered in an era of negative music in Western classical music that lasted for over fifty years. His theory was eventually accepted by composers throughout the Western world and was taught in the finest music schools. The result of all this was the incorporation of negative music into TV programs and movies. Negative music is used to create e motions of suspense, terror, anxiety, and fear. It is the music that accompanies crime programs and horror films. The same kind of music that concert audiences rejected because of the feelings that the music invoked became standard TV fare, and for the very same reasons (5). I never thought about the idea that scary and suspenseful music was a break from the norm. It is obvious though that it changes behavior in people. Just watch a horror flick with a friend. You will both know when something horrible is going to happen. The learned behavior from the music stimulus ranges from sliding back in your seat, to covering and closing your eyes. The music tells you something bad is coming and you know how to respond to it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Western classical music was the first style of music to incorporate negativity. The next step in the evolution of negative music was its introduction into rock music in the late 1960s. The first hard rock and heavy metal music was produced by the rock group called Blue Cheer somewhere around 1967. Their music was angry and had a noticeably heavy beat.. At this time, the music of the Rolling Stones, too, became harder and angry, with a negative accent.