RHYTHM (MUSICALITY)
Psychologists believe that we are all born with a natural tempo
we feel comfortable operating in: whether that is the pace we walk
at or the speed we talk at. For the average person, this is about
two beats per second. This may be hardwired into all of our brains
by our mother's heartbeat when we were in the womb.
So effectively, in our very early lives our individual natural
rhythm is set out and to work outside this comfort zone is very
difficult to do and is a measure of how intelligent you are.
So what is your musical intelligence?
The Test
Our expert uses rhythm to assess the ability of our brains to
adapt.
This test was in two parts:
Part One: Our contestants were taken to a sound studio where
they were played 25 separate rhythms which they had to replicate
on an electronic drum pad. Each rhythm is more complex than the
last and so more difficult to copy exactly. Using
sophisticated computer analysis, our expert decided whether each
contestant matched each rhythm they heard and how closely they matched
it.
Part Two: To act as a tiebreaker if two or more contestant's
scores were level after Part One of the test, each contestant was
given a musical improvisation test. They each listened to a background
rhythm track for 20 seconds. Then they were given a set number of
bars to improvise a mad drum solo, again for approximately 20 seconds.
At the beginning of their solos, the background track is faded out.
Once they had finished, our original background track was brought
up again. We compared their solo with the track to assess their
ability to keep in time to the backing track and their artistic
interpretation.
The Experts
Carolyn Drake Cognitive Music Psychologist, French
National Science Foundation. Phil, sound editor/engineer.
Why Is It Superhuman To Be Musically
Intelligent?
Musically intelligent people generally have a natural affinity
with all kinds of music. And they tend to perform better at certain
tasks:
- They will be better at co-ordinating their reactions to what's
going on in their environment - for example they will be better
at many sports and also skills such as typing.
- They will be able to learn a new language more easily.
- Their spacial orientation will be better.
- They will be better at conducting a casual conversation
- so, for example, knowing when it's a good time to interject
Indeed, musical training makes changes to the human brain. In musicians,
certain areas of the brain are bigger and respond more strongly
to stimulation. Children who listen to Mozart for 20 minutes get
an improvement in their IQ score - scientists believe that listening
to Mozart puts your brain into a particular state of arousal.
Scoring
Contestants scored two points for a perfect reproduction of each
rhythm they heard and one point for a close match. Their overall
scores were based on what they scored over the 25 separate rhythms.
Any tied scores were split by how well they performed in their drum
solo improvisations.
Our Superhuman was the contestant who was most able to integrate
what they heard and what they did.
Click here to see the
final results >
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