You've heard this one: the genius kid in the back of your class grew up listening to Mozart. And he's smarter than you. (Or you think he is). Mozart = intelligence. Correlation = causation.
Apparently, the whole thing started with a misleading article that summarized and distorted another article.
At least, that's what this refreshing little article implies. (Yes, I'm aware of the irony: but I trust this summary article for some reason: it has a citation). The original study seems to have indicated that the effects of listening to Mozart only lasted about 15 minutes anyhow. According Frances Rauscher, the researcher who did the original study, it's actually possible to have the equivalent of the "Mozart effect" with any kind of music. I'm already thinking of a Weird Al effect. Or a didgeridoo effect.
We can all be glad that there's no longer a reason to link Mozart's music with intellectual superiority. That kind of musical elitism doesn't help anybody.
If we're going to speak of elitism and Mozart, we might as well think about the use of Mozart's music as a means of punishment, as a way of clearing teenagers from the streets. Especially in Great Britain, Mozart's music is used as a weapon against youth culture. The implication is that "undesirables" can be driven from parts of the city by the use of music, reserving those places for the people who do enjoy Mozart...who just so happen to be the kind of people already in powerA vicious cycle, and if it spreads, I think we should expect Mozart's popularity to severely decline in Great Britain as the current youth matures. I'm not sure this trend has everything to do with the "Mozart effect," but I suspect there's some causation as well as correlation here.
Of course, compared to the use of music by American soldiers in battle, and as a form of torture, the civic use of Mozart as a weapon is comparatively mild.
But it's a difference of degree, not kind. While the army tends to use Metallica rather than Mozart, the concept is pretty much the same: people are forced to listen to music they dislike or change their behavior.
Mozart, who believed that music "must never offend the ear," would be horrified.
Greetings, Matt!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this post! I haven’t contemplated the “Mozart Effect” in several years, and I, too, enjoyed that article that revisited the initial study. As I read it again, I found myself comparing the scant evidence for a Mozart Effect (which nevertheless caused a sensation) with the mountain of evidence that indicates that music education in general helps kids advance in other subjects—including spatial reasoning, mathematics, language skills, etc.—a possibility that music educators often have to advertise vigorously if it’s to receive any attention from parents and school administrators.
I suspect that part of the reason the Mozart Effect caused a sensation was because it appealed to our taste for instant, easy gratification: the effects were apparently immediate and only required that you plugged in and passively sat through a recording. Selling parents on the benefits of a “real” musical education means asking them to commit time and money, to embark on a process that might last through 12 years of public schooling, and to have their kids participate in rehearsals, lessons, and concerts.
On the plus side, though, those studies about the benefits of music education—like the original Mozart Effect study—don’t seem to prescribe a particular style of music. You reap the benefits whether you’re playing Sousa in band, singing showtunes in choir, or picking out Mozart at the piano.
Hi Alexander! Thanks for your comments - I think you're absolutely right the Mozart Effect and instant gratification. Music education, I think, builds some of the same skills that sports can (team-building, especially), but with more inclusiveness, more of an aesthetic sense, and with less potential for physical violence. I don't think it's a coincidence that so many people have to choose between music and sports in school!
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