Music, Memory & Your Mind
I recently shared in the class (and in an Instagram post) how the song Don’t Stop Believing by Journey had meaning for me; it holds memories, and the emotions associated with them. Music does that.
This song apparently activated my episodic memory. Here is a definition for you:
Episodic memory is the memory of everyday events (such as times, location geography, associated emotions, and other contextual information) that can be explicitly stated or conjured. It is the collection of past personal experiences that occurred at particular times and places; for example, the party on one's 7th birthday. Along with semantic memory, it comprises the category of explicit memory, one of the two major divisions of long-term memory (the other being implicit memory).
Have any of you seen Fareed Zakaria's interview with Billy Joel? If you love music, or Billy Joel, it is so worth your while (here's the LINK).
Hearing Billy talk about how he creates music, his process as a composer, and his collaborative process with his band was entertaining and fascinating. Billy said that it is the lyrics that help us remember the melody, but it also seems to work the other way around!
If you tune in to this interview you will get to hear all these great Billy Joel songs! Billy Joel's albums came out steadily through the 70's, 80's and 90's. When Tommy and I got together in 1985, we were both big Billy Joel fans. I remember sitting in a cafe in NYC's West Village (Greenwich Village), one of our first dates, after listening to the song Scenes From an Italian Restaurant together. Any time I hear that song, or any Billy Joel song, I am reminded not only of college where my now deceased friend Jennifer Winkler got me listening to Billy Joel, but of Tommy and me and our early courtship. Billy Joel and his music hold an array of memories for me. It felt like a gift to hear this interview, his music and be revisited by so many things I had not thought about in years. And with those memories are the waves of emotion, and whole worlds I once inhabited coming back, just as if it were yesterday.
I find the research on music and memory so interesting, and l have provided some links below to an article as well as fun YouTube video with John Legend and a neuroscientist.
The research on music and memory demonstrates how it is not just about the past but about how our associative memory influences our working memory. Here are some Wiki definitions of associative memory and working memory for you:
In psychology, associative memory is defined as the ability to learn and remember the relationship between unrelated items. This would include, for example, remembering the name of someone or the aroma of a particular perfume. This type of memory deals specifically with the relationship between these different objects or concepts. A normal associative memory task involves testing participants on their recall of pairs of unrelated items, such as face-name pairs. Associative memory is a declarative memory structure and episodically based.
Working memory is the small amount of information that can be held in mind and used in the execution of cognitive tasks, in contrast with long-term memory, the vast amount of information saved in one's life. Working memory is one of the most widely-used terms in psychology.
Here are a few more definitions, but no need to remember them:
In psychology, implicit memory is one of the two main types of long-term human memory. It is acquired and used unconsciously, and can affect thoughts and behaviors. One of its most common forms is procedural memory, which allows people to perform certain tasks without conscious awareness of these previous experiences; for example, remembering how to tie one's shoes or ride a bicycle without consciously thinking about those activities.
Implicit memory's counterpart is known as explicit memory or declarative memory, which refers to the conscious, intentional recollection of factual information, previous experiences and concepts.
Explicit memory (or declarative memory) is one of the two main types of long-term human memory, the other of which is implicit memory. Explicit memory is the conscious, intentional recollection of factual information, previous experiences, and concepts. This type of memory is dependent upon three processes: acquisition, consolidation, and retrieval. Explicit memory can be divided into two categories: episodic memory, which stores specific personal experiences, and semantic memory, which stores factual information. Explicit memory requires gradual learning, with multiple presentations of a stimulus and response.
I started thinking about this after noticing how much better I learned and remembered combinations in dance class, if I knew the song I was dancing to. I also noticed that if I could relate what I was learning to something I had done before it was easier. Analogies helped. Simple instructions and lots of repetition are also helpful.
If we are a beginner or learning something truly new it will be much harder.
That is because our working memory (see definition above) will be taxed much more than that of someone who can call on previous experience and think "Oh, this is like..." For the more experienced person there is more space in the working memory for the new tasks they might be asked to learn, thus they will not be challenged to the same degree as the true beginner.
I love to thing about these things because I love learning. And finding ways to always be a beginner at something (and thus, kind of suck for a while) is a great way to keep learning about the PROCESS of learning.
In doing so on a regular basis I have learned to be supportive, encouraging, and patient with myself as I continue to expose my body and brain to activities that are challenging. I know that the challenge helps me grow, especially when dosed appropriately. Short bouts of focused attention are helpful (because attention is limited). I don't expect to get it all, at all! I let mistakes happen as they are essential if true autonomous learning is to occur! When possible, I try to relate what I am learning to existing knowledge. Association and analogy help. I use lots of repetition!
We are complex creatures. And most importantly: We are feeling creatures who think.
If we want to learn, or remember, or live more fully in the present moment, maybe we can invite more of ourselves to process. The WHOLE of ourselves, past, present, and future.
For a deeper dive here is a link to a research article: LINK
And if you prefer to watch, check out this great video: LINK