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Are We Different?

All my life I have been more attuned to sensory experiences than my friends, family, or colleagues. I started to notice this in high school when I would go on and on about how great a particular passage sounded while playing in bands, I would rave about a meal that I ate, the smells of pleasant or unpleasant things, or a particularly good looking passage in a movie or piece of art.  

This question arose for me last week when talking to a friend and relating that I frequently get chills and goosebumps listening to music (live or in my living room). He looked at me as if he had no idea what I was talking about, and thought I was nuts. I thought that happened to everyone!! Since then I have been conducting an informal survey of folks I know about exactly that question. Again, most folks have no experience of this and think I'm bit off. So I wonder: Are we different? Is it something in our biology that lands us in the realm of audio-obsession, constantly looking for the perfect sound stage in our living rooms, and criticizing badly engineered recordings, or scoffing at the sound designers for poorly mixed live shows?

What is it that separates the music enthusiast/lover from the obsessed, ever-searching-never-satisfied, gear-heads which many of us are? 

Share your thoughts (and also do you get chills and goosebumps listening to Beethoven/Charlie Parker/The Stones?)
birdfan
ronrags's avatar
ronrags
182 posts
 
Ben,

I know where you are coming from. I too have been attuned to many things since a child including sounds, smells and especially a person's state of mind. I would sense their emotions when speaking on the phone or seeing their slightest facial expressions even at a distance. They would wonder how I knew something was wrong or different. I enjoy looking at nature or great architecture while others are oblivious.

I believe the word is sensitivity. Some have more than others especially when it comes to music and the arts. That's why we get goosebumps or get emotional but others don't. I'm also wondering if it has to do with genetics. I remember seeing the Sound of Music movie when it first played in Manhattan and watching my mom getting all emotional during the opening scene. She thought she was on top of that mountain. She said her grandfather would pretend he was conducting an orchestra and get emotional when listening to the radio back in the 30s. I found myself doing the same thing when I listen to classical music and neither of us have any formal musical training.  

So are we different, yes. Strange, maybe.............
birdfan's avatar
birdfan OP
50 posts
 
@nonoise  is it particular sounds as in timbres, certain instruments, frequencies?? For me its a groove, a feel, or when someone absolutely nails a lick, when a band hits an ending so tight together you would swear it was contrived, a beautiful melody. Also thanks for the term. I did a little read. I wonder is "openness to experience" akin to or correlated with  "sensory seeking".. Which I most certainly am. 

@ronrags you go to the ancient question... Nature or nurture?As an aside,  I too walk into rooms and feel those around me.. guess always been a bit empathic, made a damn career of it.. I also feel these two qualities are tied together(sensate focused/aware and empathic), possibly as they are both very right brain... Lots of dopamine released with the right gear and the right tune I must say..

@chayro I am just starting to admit(at times) that I might have a bit of problem.. I can relate with fiddling over gear instead of enjoying the tunes or dancing...I slap myself when I catch it .. 
nonoise's avatar
nonoise
4,382 posts
 
@bensturgeon, it can be anything in the music that I can relate to while I listen. Kind of hard to pin down, actually. 
I think the two terms, "openness to experience" and "sensory seeking" are tied in the way that one can lead to the other, in some way.

All the best,
Nonoise
michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
643 posts
 

I'm glad to see more of these types of topics being started on not just this forum but many others. There's a change happening and there's really no way to stop it, nor should we want to.

Even the very opinionated HEA hobbyist is rethinking their systems and looking at them deeper than a brand name or faceplate. There was a time where the engineer type ruled the pages of forums and if you expressed yourself as an artist it was the kiss of death. It's ironic because we are listening to artist.

I live in a part of Las Vegas that is called "The Arts District". As folks come visit me, it's almost always the case where they will comment on the energy here. I call it "getting tuned".

Michael Green

www.michaelgreenaudio.net

falconquest's avatar
falconquest
480 posts
 
I don’t know if the "openness" to music, art and other stimuli is the same for listeners/viewers as it is for musicians that actually create music, but I have always wondered where music creativity comes from. Some of the most creative music artists come from families where there is no music background eliminating the idea that it is somehow gene based. I can’t help but believe that music listeners and musicians share at least an ear for music. Some of us may not be talented enough to play yet we still appreciate what others create, just as we appreciate art without being painters. Good musicians can create music that somehow touches something within us and that feeling is at least somewhat universal. How do they do that and why do we enjoy it so much? Sometimes I hear certain music and wonder, how in the world did anyone come up with that musical idea? Some musicians say it’s just what’s in their head. Not sure we understand it fully but it is pretty cool.
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