When it comes to acknowledging the effect of music, research is barely necessary. The fact that music has power to change is universally and historically accepted - that's why it's been made by people from every culture, in every land, in every decade and century.
If you're a regular reader you'll know I love a good quote - here are some good ones about music:
"Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything." - Plato
"Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." - Berthold Auerbach
"I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity. It's something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we're from, everyone loves music." - Billy Joel
"Music can change the world because it can change people." - Bono
"Music is my aeroplane." - Anthony Keidis
Music is that lift; music makes us fly. It doesn't even have to be happy music to do that; listening to sad songs is like crying on the shoulder of an understanding friend.
A couple of years ago it was my practice to arrive at work and do YouTube battle with my colleague who had the adjoining classroom. Our tastes were pretty similar - funk and soul classics got the most spins but our musical appetites were pretty eclectic so anything went. One year Daft Punk's 'Get Lucky' soundtracked the SATs and the next it was Pharrell's 'Happy'. My end of year gift to my colleague was a mix CD of all our most regular plays. Those YouTube sessions really buoyed us in the morning - we were pretty chirpy in class after that.
This morning, I broke with tradition and listened to music on my way into work. I had tweeted a link to 'Good Day' by Nappy Roots ("You know today I just woke up and I said, 'You know instead of waitin' on a good day, Waitin' around through ups and downs, Waitin' on something to happen I just say: We're gonna have a good day'") and I wanted to hear it in full. A quick search on my iPod revealed I didn't have it but turned up some other great tunes to soundtrack a positive start to the day: Good Vibrations by Beach Boys, Good Times by Chic, Good Day Sunshine by The Beatles and Good Times by Roll Deep (odd one out but played at both my brother's and my sister's weddings so a bit of a family anthem).
All possible dust, as a I drove into the remnants of a beautiful sunrise, was washed away as I enjoyed the music. I walked into school with a smile on my face, a bounce in my step and music in my soul.
Get some music into the start of your day - it could transform your attitude and it might make you feel better.
Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/44124372363@N01/13927396724/">swanksalot</a> via <a href="http://compfight.com">Compfight</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>