The Power Of The Chill Out Jam

Being an avid music listener whose tastes range from, Mary J. Blige, to all things Motown & Stax, to Otis Redding, to Kerri Chandler, to Chaka Khan, to Masters At Work, to Bob James, to Holst, to Romeo Void, to Nina Hagen, to The Clash, to Moloko, to composers Bernard Hermann, Ennio Morricone and Carl Stalling to 50's R&B legend Louie Jordan, I find that what really gets my blood moving is a modern piece of music which is structured in such a way that it reveals its secrets and rewards in slow measured layers using complex arrangements of vocalization and instrumentation, while simutaneously lifting me to different levels of musical bliss.

To put it quite simply, it gives me the chills.

I won't negate the sexual thrill of soulful chillout masters like Barry White, The Ohio Players, Al Green, Marvin Gaye, D'Angelo, Maxwell, Bobby Womack, or The Sylistics, with their tried, tested & true baby making skills. What makes their music special to me is that when I'm listening, I'm there, in the moment, making a tangential connection with someone, if you know what I mean. But sometimes, I want to travel to a place where I'm both of and not of the moment, yet fully cognizant of both states if that makes any sense. I want to cry. Shiver. Feel Joy. Be moved. In my mind, I want to savor the bittersweet flavor of melancholy.

I found an interesting article online on LiveScience, written by Corey Binns, which partly describes the feeling from a scientific angle:

"For a willing music audience, the art of drawing emotion from notes is classic.

Composers play with subtle, intricate changes and rates of change to try and elicit emotion. In recent studies, scientists found that people already familiar with the music are more likely to catch a chill at key moments:

When a symphony turns from loud to quiet
Upon entry of a solo voice or instrument
When two singers have contrasting voices

People covered in goose bumps also tend to be driven more by rewards, and less inclined to be thrill- and adventure-seekers, according to research conducted at the Institute for Music Physiology and Musicians’ Medicine in Hanover, Germany.

Music can do more than just give you goose bumps. A melody can:

Ease labor pain
Reduce the need for sedation during surgery
Evoke strong memories
Lessen depression
Listening to your favorite hits can shift your breathing pattern and speed up your heart rate.

Shivers down the spine even show up in brain scans, according to research at McGill University. As chills grow in intensity, bloodflow increases between areas of the brain associated with euphoria-inducing vices like food, sex, and drugs.

In the near future, the German research team plans to further study the central nervous system's reactions to music that gives fans the chills."

Music doesn't have to be all that deep for most listeners, but if it is for you, then I'll look forward to joining you in that place where all we'll need is the sound of the music to express what we're feeling and thinking. Words won't be necessary.
You know who you are.........