For most of us, a familiar song can be a time machine. It can instantly take us back to our first kiss, an early heartbreak, or an unforgettable road trip. Now, new research from Goldsmiths, University of London, shows that the sound of a song can help shape which memory pops up. They can even influence how hard those memories hit.
The study, published in PLOS One, is the largest so far to directly tie the acoustic features of music to the qualities of music-evoked autobiographical memories (MEAMs). And the results could determine therapies for a host of mental health issues, such as dementia and depression. It can also shed new light on how memory and music interact.
A Large-Scale Look at Musical Memory
Psychologists Safiyyah Nawaz and Diana Omigie recruited 233 adults, between the ages of 18 and 76, to participate in their online experiment. The researchers asked each participant to pick a song that meant something to them and describe the memory associated with it. They also rated the memory’s vividness, importance, and emotional tone.
Later, they listened to 10 short clips of songs culled from the Billboard Hot 100 charts during their formative years (ages 9 to 19, a crucial time for music-related memories). If a song sparked something, participants again rated the recall for detail and emotional content.
Throughout the study, participants provided more than 1,400 music-evoked memories. It was enough to allow the researchers to analyze not only what people remembered, but why certain songs wield such power.
Using Spotify’s Web API, the team managed to isolate nine auditory features from each memory-evoking track, including energy, loudness, acousticness, tempo, and danceability. A subsequent statistical analysis revealed a single critical factor, which the researchers dubbed energeticness-acousticness (E-A). One end of the spectrum featured energetic, loud, electronic or dance-oriented songs. And the other? Quieter, more acoustic tracks.
Different Sounds Mean Different Memories
The contrast between high-energy and acoustic songs mapped neatly onto differences in the types of memories they brought forth:
- High-energy songs (like club tracks or pop anthems) tended to elicit memories marked by excitement, amusement, and social interaction. Listeners typically associated these songs to concerts, parties, or some other group event.
- Lower-energy, more acoustic tracks (like ballads or classical compositions) seemed to be more likely to elicit memories that the participants described as vivid, unique, and personally important. Listeners associated these emotional tunes to a sense of calmness, sadness, romance, or aesthetic appreciation.
Notably, acoustic songs often evoked memories brimming with more negative emotion words. Even so, the participants still rated these recollections as overall positive experiences. That paradox, the authors point out, underscores music’s ability to reframe painful events in a more forgiving light.
The researchers also looked at how quickly – and vividly – memories surfaced. Participants recalled energetic songs (and the memories tied to them) more quickly and more often. While acoustic tracks prompted slower recall but produced longer, more detailed memory descriptions.
Simply put, upbeat music performed better when triggering many memories, but quieter music tended to yield more powerful ones.
One striking difference emerged between self-selected songs and experimenter-chosen chart hits. Listeners consistently rated memories tied to personally chosen songs as more vivid, emotional, unique, and important. They also contained more specific sensory details. This, the authors suggest, hints that while the acoustic profile of a song matters, a personal connection might matter even more.
Why This Matters
The findings carry implications for both psychology and clinical practice. Dementia caregivers are already using music-based reminiscence therapy to spark forgotten episodes and strengthen identity. Knowing which song types are most likely to evoke vivid or social memories could help therapists tailor playlists to patient needs.
For example, upbeat, high-energy songs might be useful for encouraging social engagement, while acoustic ballads could help surface personally meaningful life stories.
The study also emphasizes the need to move beyond simple “positive versus negative” emotional models. By tracking specific categories like romance, aesthetic appreciation, or amusement, the researchers make a case that music can cue up a far richer emotional palette than earlier two-dimensional models of arousal and valence suggested.
Further Reading
Researcher Sounds Off On The Power of Music
