When you feel the music

Via Pexels.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love concerts. Naturally, I'm not the only one; it's hard to find a person that can resist the opportunity to see their favorite artist live. A big part of what makes concerts special is the social and emotional attachment. If listening to a song in my room can give me goosebumps, listening to that song surrounded by people that enjoy it as much as I do, watching the artist play it live and plugging out of any other stuff going on... its an other-worldly experience. However, there is also a logical explanation as to why we enjoy concerts so much: they let us perceive music through more than one sense.

Throughout the years and through a lot of investigation about cognitive processes in different areas, it has been proven that the more senses are engaged in an activity, the better our perception of it is. This explains why reading physical books is still better for reading comprehension and assessment of information than digital mediums (the scent of the book and feeling of changing the page stimulate memory), videogames are a recommended activity for children suffering ADHD (the simultaneous engagement of touch, sight and hearing helps the person to focus their attention on a single activity), and hip hop choreography videos in YouTube are so popular (movements in hip hop are mainly based upon beat cues from the music - synchronizing the song and the movement creates a sense of satisfaction for both the dancer and the viewer). 

Anyone would think that hearing is the sense that matters the most in the music spectrum. However, sight is so predominant in human perception, that it can change the way we experience music in a live presentation. In a study by the University College of London, several musicians, amateur and professional, were asked to guess the winners of a music competition based only on the audio of the performance, the muted video of the performance, or the video with audio of the performance. Only those who analyzed the muted video guessed the winners correctly. These results aid the statement that our natural, automatic and unconscious dependence on visual cues dominate auditory information. 

Via GIPHY.

This is why lighting is such an important factor in the production of a live performance. Lights on a stage not only serve the purpose of illuminating the artist, but of emphasizing the music, enhancing the stimuli that the audience receives during the performance, and complementing our perception. Visual cues highlight musical beats during the performance, which creates a much bigger impact on the audience, making us feel we're surrounded by music. Other visual cues include screens, choreography, costumes and stage design. The more attention-grabbing these cues are, the more impact they will have. From Michael Jackson's dance moves and KISS's iconic looks, to Led Zeppelin's groundbreaking laser projections, fostering creativity when it comes to sensorial involvement has made of live performances inimitable and unforgettable experiences. 

Via Rolling Stones.

A good show is able to amplify the effects on music in the audience, regardless of genre or format. Although the typical confetti cannons and flamethrowers will never miss, many artists are in a constant pursuit for innovation in their shows and becoming interactive experiences. Be it The 1975's screen and stage lighting mapping, synchronized light bands that Coldplay uses better that anybody, or Beyoncé in any performance, ever... the well-achieved goal is to intensify music through every sense. When you're so deep into the experience that you stop thinking rationally and you just let yourself go, that is when you see, touch and live the music. 

I just bought tickets to Florence + the machine's concert and I cannot wait for the sensorial overload to send me straight to heaven.