Music has been closely linked with human activities from the stone age when man used to wander aimlessly to feed himself and to fulfil his bodily needs like a smart animal. Smart because he knew how fire could be produced and how to communicate with claps, vocalizations, toning and even making noise and sounds to scare away animals, hostile human groups and even ghosts.
The primitive man found sound as puzzling or as reverential as fire. Like fire came to be worshipped, so was sound. The ancient voodooism, shamanism, nada yoga, etc. were the man-made system of sound utilization to strengthen one’s “inner self’ so that one could overcome the shortcomings of the “outer self” successfully.
It is long recognized in all ancient cultures that through inner culture one could achieve outer culture. If one wants happiness for himself or herself, he or she has to make everyone around him/her happy. In order to do that again one has to remain happy – a clear chick-or-egg-first story!
Music thus could be profitably employed by the man right from his “primitive” days not only make him or others happy but also inculcate certain desired qualities in a given situation in life. Thus to overcome negative emotions like fear and to build up coverage and confidence, he had to depend on certain genre of music, which can be loosely termed in today’s jargon as “beta” music (Beta music in the type of music that could be synchronized with the beta-state in brainwave pattern leading to physically and mentally active state (neurologically speaking). (This genre of music is distinguishable from what is called “alpha” music which is synchronized to the alpha brainwave pattern in the brain, which leads to a relaxed state of body and mind).
Now to create this “fiction” of beta-state or to simply say to activate one’s being (which includes body and mind), beta music comes handy, provided the listener gets totally drawn in by such music through concentration or involvement. The ancient civilizations were aware of the impact of such genres of music, their source and also their usefulness.
Take for example, the genre of music which has been used in all parts of the world by army bands. Though they may be having different origins, viz, regions or instruments, they all exhibit a strong and close resemblance with each other in terms of their characteristics. One may notice in these tunes and musical pieces certain characteristics indicating a sense of dominance or assertiveness, upward mobility, accelerating tempo, cheerfulness and confidence — essential characteristics for the fighting warriors.
Several instruments such as drums, kettle drums, side drums, reeds, bag-pipes, cymbals, bugles, horns, etc. ideally express the battle ambience.
Edited by Geeta Shreedar, Nov. 27, 2021