Music as a Societal Tool Essay

Music plays vitally important role in human societies irrespective of historical period of concrete country or territory. Most individuals are aware of the feeling, when music penetrates so deeply into the soul and heart that a person react to it, changes his attitude, changes his behavior, takes important decisions or simply laughs or cries. Music could become a real motivation and inspiration for being active, positive, for working hard in various spheres and developing good relationships with out people around. Thus music has really strong power to change and move individuals and the whole societies.

Taking into consideration today’s development of technologies, it is evident that music has become a part of life experience of almost all categories of people in most countries of the world. They are able to listen to it constantly, there is no need to visit a concert, people can drive to work, study and exercise, listening to music.

There are already historical examples of how music could change the society, when the music became the central voice of the political and social change. Musicians are able to reach the masses even more than political leaders. “Although there has been political activism in music before, the politically charged nature of music didn’t break into popular music until the 1960s and 1970s during the era of the Vietnam War. Artists like The Beatles, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Jefferson Airplane and The Who protested the war and the turmoil it brought upon their generation.” (Trainor, L.J., Schmidt 2003). After the end of the Vietnam War in 1980s hip-hop and rap started to develop and they were also included into the list of politically influential music. Rappers used their music in order to reveal their frustration about the surrounding world and their songs did really have their effect. When you listen to direct and short sentences, rhymed in such a way that they are easily remembered, you feel a part of the society, experiencing the same pains and concerns, as other people around.

Music is played during various important life events, including celebrations, funeral marches, weddings, etc. cultural explanations of the meaning of music are related to the social power of music. If I like a singer or a musician, I try to listen to his opinions about various political and social matters and certainly they have impact upon me and my perceptions. To the same extent musicians are able to impact millions of people worldwide. In their paper on music and mirror neuron systems, Molnar-Szakacs and Overy refer to the idea that music is a “form of communication in which acoustic patterns and their auditory representations elicit a variety of conscious experiences” (Molnar-Szakacs, Overy 2006). The dimensions of the music could not be limited only to sonic, rather they are also interactive, simultaneous, auditory. Due to the music’s capacity to imitate certain biological movements, related to emotional response, for example voice, gait, heartbeat, there was a strong connection between music and emotion built. Music could not be considered as characteristic of a concrete individual, rather of the whole community. “Though the experience of listening to and making music is highly personal and individuated, music’s potent social power lies in its ability to be made, understood, and transmitted as a group.” (Trainor, L.J., Schmidt 2003).

Overall, music is an integral part of culture and it performs a great number of functions in all societies. There is an evident duality, as on the one hand music is under the impact of current social situation and historical events and on the other hand music itself could become a strong motivator, impacting societies and individuals.

Works cited:

Molnar-Szakacs, Istvan, and Katie Overy. “Music and mirror neurons: from motion to ‘e’motion”. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006

Trainor, L.J., Schmidt. L.A. “Processing Emotions Induced by Music”. The Cognitive Neuroscience of Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]
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