Classical music has antidepressant effects on the brain

It is widely documented that the music influences mood. Now, a new study has gone further and has shown that classical music has positive effects on the brain, a finding that could help patients with treatment-resistant depression.

The study, led by Chinese researchers and published this Friday in the journal Cell Reports, has analyzed the neurological effect of music composed by Western composers such as Bach, Beethoven or Mozart and has demonstrated through brain wave measurements and neuroimaging techniques that these compositions have positive effects on the brain.

“Our research integrates the fields of neuroscience, psychiatry and neurosurgery, providing a foundation for any research targeting the interaction between music and emotion.”explains lead author Bomin Sun, director and professor of the Center for Functional Neurosurgery at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

“Ultimately, we hope to translate the results of our research into clinical practice, developing convenient and effective music therapy tools and applications.”

A study with thirteen patients

The study involved thirteen patients with treatment-resistant depression who had already had electrodes implanted in their brains for deep brain stimulation purposes.

These implants are placed in a circuit that connects two areas of the forebrain: the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) and the nucleus accumbens (NAc).

Using these implants, the team discovered that music generates its antidepressant effects by synchronizing neural oscillations between the auditory cortex (responsible for processing sensory information) and the reward circuit (processes emotional information).

“This study reveals that music induces triple temporal blocking of neuronal oscillations in the cortical-BNST-NAc circuit through auditory synchronization”.

The study used several pieces of Western classical music – a type of music with which most participants were unfamiliar – to avoid any interference that might arise from subjective familiarity.

“We concluded that musical choices during the formal listening process were individualized and unrelated to the emotional background of the music,” Sun says.

From now on, “In collaboration with clinicians, music therapists, computer scientists and engineers, we plan to develop a series of digital health products based on music therapy, such as smartphone apps and wearable devices,” Sun advances.

“These products will integrate personalized music recommendations, real-time emotional monitoring and feedback, and multi-sensory virtual reality experiences to provide convenient and effective self-help tools to manage emotions and improve symptoms in everyday life.”