Bass parts are extremely important to us because our brain is made to better recognize rhythms when they are performed in lower tones. All this is due to the feeling of security and comfort that we developed in our mother’s womb.
For nine months, the fetus is surrounded by sounds. When our sense of hearing develops in our mother’s womb, sometime between the 4th and 5th month, the sound of our mother’s heartbeat and the pulsation of our bloodstream are something we become familiar with. Our subconscious records these sounds and we identify them with a sense of security and satisfaction.
Dr. Lee Salk, professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at Cornell University Medical Center, conducted experiments in 1960 that proved that babies who were constantly exposed to the sound of a heartbeat at a rate of about 72 beats per minute felt the soothing effect of that sound. Because of this, 70 percent of the babies in the study looked happier, cried less and progressed and gained weight more easily.
Dr. Murooka of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Nihon University wrote in his research thesis in 1982 about the bonding between the primary caregiver and the child in a situation where both were exposed to certain sounds. The conclusion of this research paper is that exposure of newborns and older babies to the sounds they were used to in the womb had a calming effect on them.
After these two pioneering experiments, numerous similar researches were conducted in this area.
By measuring vibrations in the womb, scientists have found that they affect our memory and create a strong connection with feelings of safety and comfort. This is why we all need to have this memory link stored in our subconscious.
The pioneer of Japanese space rocket development, Dr. Hideo Itokawa, played the cello in his spare time. The vibrations that occur when playing this stringed instrument gave him the idea to develop a special speaker for transmitting low-frequency vibrations to the body via bone conduction.
It was found that the sounds of the lower register are transmitted to the body as a vibration and give a pleasant resonance. Lower frequencies have an invisible power that aids psychological well-being and physiological health. In the Society of Harmonic Sciences of Japan, as many as three sound healing methods are promoted. These are sounds from nature, healing vibrations and the technique of speaking through the breath.
In December 2018, the company “Honda” presented a children’s toy called Honda Sound Sitter. It is a soft, plush toy that plays the sound of Honda’s new sports engine. It has the possibility of reproducing the sound of the engine, as well as recording.
The toy’s effectiveness was tested on very young babies. In 11 out of 12 babies who were given the toy, the results were positive – the children stopped crying, their heart rate slowed down and they generally became calmer.
For the purposes of this project, many different engine sounds were tested and their qualities were compared. Different car engines offered different types of body relaxation.
Authors of a study published in a scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of Americawere concerned with the connection between musical tones in the lower register and the possibility of bass instruments taking over the basic rhythm of music.
In other words, bass parts, that is, melodic lines, are extremely important to us because our brain is made to better recognize rhythms when they are performed in lower tones.
More than the guitar and even the drums that give the rhythm to the song, the bass instruments are what make us nod our heads, dance and follow the rhythm of the song.
That’s why even going to a club where the music is loud and the bass makes our body tremble, brings us a recognizable feeling of comfort and relaxes us. And, scientists say, it’s not from modern music and popular artists, but from what we learned while we were in our mother’s womb.
Source: www.sitoireseto.com
