Symphony synchrony! Audience members’ heart rates sync up at classical concerts, study finds

Listening to classical music can make the hearts of the audience beat in sync during a concert.

Their emotional response to a symphony can even cause classical music fans to breathe at a similar pace and move in their seats in the same way.

Researchers recruited 132 concertgoers in Berlin, aged 18 to 85, who listened to a string quintet of music by Beethoven, Brahms and current London Philharmonic Orchestra composer Brett Dean.

People’s breathing rates, measured by a belt with sensors in it, were most synchronized in response to the music.

This was monitored by their heart rate and their apparent level of arousal, measured by a small increase in sweat on their fingertips.

People’s breathing rates, measured by a belt with sensors in it, were most synchronized in response to the music

People who described emotions as feeling “inspired” or “emotionally moved” by the music of Brahms and Dean were more likely to have a synchronized heart rate.

Professor Wolfgang Tschacher, who co-led the research at the University of Bern in Switzerland, said: ‘It’s fascinating that people at a concert, who don’t know each other and don’t even talk to each other, seem to have a shared opinion. experience, based on measurements such as their heart rate.

“When we see synchrony, we know that people are really involved in the music because they are responding emotionally to it in the same way.”

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, asked people to rate different experiences during the concerts.

Those who considered having a good time with their companions an important part of their experience were less likely to synchronize their physical response to the music with that of other people.

This could indicate that too much interest in socializing with other civilized types can distract from the uplifting experience of the music.

People who described emotions as “inspired” or “emotionally moved” by the music of Brahms and Dean were more likely to have synchronized heartbeats

Extroverts and people who were more neurotic were also less likely to have synchronized responses in their fingertip sweat – indicating they were less engaged and excited by the music.

People whose responses to questionnaires showed that they have a pleasant personality and enjoy new experiences seemed to respond more deeply to the music, based on their synchronization with other people.

The authors note that people’s movements generally became synchronized even though they were seated apart in dim light – meaning that audience members were similarly absorbed into the music without realizing it.

Synchronization means coordination at a statistically significant level, where the processes do not necessarily occur at exactly the same time.

It became less seen when people listened to Beethoven’s Op. 104 in C minor then when they went to Brahms’ Op. 111 in G Major and Dean’s Epitaphs composition.

Previous research has shown that musicians and conductors also synchronize their physical responses to music.