Samiul Bashar Samin
The strange thing about sad songs is that people will readily consume music that can leave them feeling bad or recalling unpleasant events. When given the choice, why wouldn’t people listen to uplifting music instead of songs that could depress them?
Sad music might make people feel vicarious unpleasant emotions. But this experience can ultimately be pleasurable because it allows a negative emotion to exist indirectly, and at a safe distance. Instead of feeling the depths of despair, people can feel nostalgia for a time when they were in a similar emotional state: a non-threatening way to remember sadness.
People who are very empathetic are more likely to take pleasure in the emotional experience of sad music. Others enjoy sad songs because they help them return to an emotionally balanced state. And those more open to varied experiences might enjoy the songs because the unique emotions that come up when listening to the music fulfill their need for novelty in thoughts and feelings.
In fact, the quest for variety could also explain why some people crave dissonant or experimental music full of uneven, cacophonous or downright disorienting sound. Musical genres such as noise, no wave and experimental rock have a dedicated fan and artist base in thriving underground scenes. Research suggests that people who are more open to novelty are more likely to take pleasure in the uncommon elements found in these non-traditional types of music. A 2012 study found a positive correlation between openness to experience and liking jazz, a genre that often defies a traditional pop structure.
It is the ability to explore off the beaten track that makes ‘irregular’ music so much fun. A good musician often improvises noise music with friends, creating by feel rather than by structure. Trying to drive music and create movement and emotions in a song without the usual tropes of rhythms or choruses and melody is really interesting.
In the end, an individual’s love of a particular song or genre of music could have roots in their specific personality – a finding that brings us a little closer to understanding how music reflects and influences our lives.