Does Music Affect Heart Rate? By Grace Brancale

Question: Hypothesis: Do different types of music affect heart rate? Yes, different types of music will affect heart rate. Slow classical music and slower hip hop will decrease the heart rate, rock and “screamo music” will increase heart rate. I predict that the faster the tempo, the greater the increase in heart rate.

Introduction Heart rate is regulated by the medulla oblongata The brain responds to rhythm and when we listen to music, the brain catches the rhythm and this is why it affects heart rate; It becomes subconscious, like a neurological pulse, and this affects the medulla oblongata which controls heart rate The heart doesn’t beat at the same tempo as the music, but it slows down or speeds up in order to become closer to it Heart rate can be influenced by different outside sources, such as exercise, temperature, emotions… or music Many studies have been done to examine this topic…

Introduction… A study by Bernardi and some colleagues was done concerning how music affects different parts of the body and body functions. They concluded that music does have an effect on heart rate as well as respiratory rate and other body functions. They discovered that slower tempi decrease heart rate and faster tempi increase heart rate. In the University of California, School of Nursing, a study was done on patients about to undergo vascular angiography. The results of this study were that the group of patients who listened to music for fifteen minutes while they were waiting had a slower heart rate than those who were in silence. A study was done in 1918 by I. H. Hyde and W. Scalapino that showed similar results. Even with the technology of those days, an ECG could still show that different tempi of music have different affects on the heart.

Method Ask test subject to take their normal heart rate. (Use students from period B Adv. Bio class, and others) Play 3 minutes of slow classical music (Reverie by Debussy) then ask for the test subject to record their pulse again. Repeat step 2 three times, the first time playing heavy metal screamo (10 Signs you should leave by Emmure), the second time playing slow hip hop (10 Seconds by Jazmine Sullivan), and the third time playing rock (American Idiot by Green Day). Analyze data and graph the changes in heart rate.

Method… Resting heart rate________bpm Heart rate after Debussy _________bpm Heart rate after Emmure _________bpm Heart rate after Jazmine Sullivan ____bpm Heart rate after Green Day ________bpm

Data Resting heart rate Debussy bpm Emmure bpm 10 Seconds bpm   Resting heart rate Debussy bpm Emmure bpm 10 Seconds bpm Green Day bpm Comments Subject #1 90 98 88 stress/anxiety, laughter Subject #2 68 70 78 76 dancing, athlete Subject #3 66 56 60 dancer Subject #4 102 92 80 none Subject #5 Subject #6 74 72 comfortable sitting Subject #7 82 allergies Subject #8 86 54 favorite music style Subject #9 84 hunger, boyfriend's music Subject #10 children interrupting Subject #11 knowledge of songs/experiment Subject #12 96 94 104 liked Green Day Averages: 79.5 74.5 78.6666667 75.66666667 76.83333333

Data 1. Resting bpm 3. Emmure bpm 5. Green Day bpm 4. Jazmine Sullivan bpm 2. Debussy bpm

Data Analysis My hypothesis was somewhat correct, but not completely. Based on the data, music does affect heart rate, and the tempo of the music was also a factor in how much the heart rate was affected. However, the average heart rate from the faster music did not exceed the average resting heart rate. Half of the hypothesis was correct; music with slower tempi decreased heart rate. The other half of the hypothesis, that music with faster tempi increases heart rate was proven incorrect. However, the experiment still proved that the tempo was a factor to how much the heart rate decreased. With Debussy and Jazmine Sullivan, the slow classical and slow hip hop music, the heart rate decreased much more than with Emmure and Green Day, the fast “screamo” and rock music. Every subject was different. The heart rate of some reacted better to some music than others. In some individuals, the faster music increased their heart rate, but overall this was not a trend. They all did what was required, but each person reacted differently. The overall trend was a decrease in heart rate during slower music and a relative increase after the faster music although not exceeding the resting heart rate.

Conclusion Based on the experiment I conducted, music does affect heart rate, but my hypothesis was not really correct. Slower music proved to decrease heart rate, but faster music did not create an increase in heart rate as I had predicted. The experiment proved that all music decreased heart rate, although not as much with the faster music. In some individuals, the faster music did increase heart rate, but overall, this is not a trend. My experiment still supports the other experiments that I cited in my introduction that showed how music decreases heart rate.

Conclusion… If I were to do this study over again, I would have made some activity such as a simple puzzle or other activity for the subjects to do while doing the experiment in order to eliminate possible variables such as distractions or dancing to the music, and just let the music affect their brains and subconscious. I would also take their heart rates while they were listening to the music so as to avoid other possible variables.

Bibliography Bernardi, Luciano, C. Porta, and P. Sleight. "Cardiovascular, Cerebrovascular, and Respiratory Changes Induced by Different Types of Music in Musicians and Non-musicians: the Importance of Silence." Heart - BMJ Journals. 30 Sept. 2005. Web. 28 Feb. 2011. <http://heart.bmj.com/content/92/4/445.full?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hi ts=10&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexacttitle=and&titleabstract=music& andorexacttitleabs=or&fulltext=music+and+heart+rate&andorexactfullt ext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT>. Danna, Theresa. "How Music Affects Heart Rate." EHow. 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2011. <http://www.ehow.com/facts_5580461_music-affects- heart-rate.html>. Hyde, I. H., and W. Scalapino. "The Influence of Music Upon Electrocardiograms and Blood Pressure." American Journal of Physiology -- Legacy Content 46.1 (1918): 35-38. American Journal of Physiology -- Legacy Content. American Physiological Society. Web. 28 Feb. 2011. <http://ajplegacy.physiology.org/content/46/1/35.full.pdf html?ijkey=25d7292d80086523fc8491b0efd846d9d8ed46f4&keytype2 =tf_ipsecsha>.