Spoiler alert: you can’t.
The other day I noticed I had the habit of having my headphones on for as long as I could. I’d wait until the very last minute to pause my music, using my headphones as a sign for others that I’m not interested in small talk, just seizing every opportunity to listen to something other than surrounding sound.
There’s nothing wrong with natural sound. Sometimes the music of people laughing, wind blowing, animals cooing, is enough alone to inspire a good day. However, music undeniably inspires passion, motivation, and pure serotonin.
According to a study from Harvard Medical School, “Music listeners had higher scores for mental well-being and slightly reduced levels of anxiety and depression compared to people overall.” Now I don’t know about you, but I need any extra help I can get.
Consistently listening to music made me feel like I was living in my own little bubble. I tend to notice when other people have headphones on, whether walking to class or even when with a group of people. I’m honestly impressed when someone can listen to music during a conversation or in an overstimulating place, I can hardly hear one person talking. I envy the possibility of having music playing at all times.
For a while I wondered why I was so set on having my headphones on and listening to music, but I immediately began to feel the benefits. Not only was I just happier and calmer, skipping through my day and entering every interaction with a smile, I felt productive and eager to learn.
Have you ever noticed how sometimes when you’re listening to music while studying or sitting in an orchestra, your head peaks up when there’s a change in beat? A dramatic chord? A tempo switch? All of a sudden you become alert with the music, allowing the vibrations you’re listening to to reflect in your everyday life. “…different individuals listen to a piece of music with wandering attention, but at the transition point between movements, their attention is arrested” (Menon; Chafe 2007).
When you think about it, it makes sense. A movie wouldn’t be a movie without a soundtrack. I would rather dance to upbeat music than a ballad. Just the other day I noticed I danced to every song that came on, changing the intensity with each beat. How divine is it to be one with music?
Just listening to a temporary melody awakens the brain in a way that cannot be replicated. I know I differ from most when it comes to how often I listen to music. I know some people who need music playing 24/7 to help them get through the day, and I completely understand why. Overtime, listeners create a bond to specific genres or artists. I don’t believe in unhealthy attachments to artists or music, in reality these artists have created a space for us to feel, to appreciate their creation. People can be drawn to a musician because of the consistency in what they produce or lack thereof.
“Music is structural, mathematical and architectural. It’s based on relationships between one note and the next. You may not be aware of it, but your brain has to do a lot of computing to make sense of it” (Johns Hopkins).
Our brains are hardwired to enjoy music. Even if you’re not the type to prefer headphones on throughout the day, or use it as background music, something in your brain lights up when you interact with a melody.
So why try to function without music? Why force yourself to sit in silence when you can enjoy the rhythms created for us and our benefit? The next time you catch yourself reaching for silence, consider filling it with a song. Not just noise, but something that moves you. Something that sparks joy, inspiration, or just a simple moment of peace. After all, if our brains are wired for music, maybe we’re meant to live in harmony with it.