In fact, music can even be used in therapy, known as Music therapy. This can be particularly effective for those who face barriers in verbal expression. It has been shown to be effective in those with
schizophrenia and
depression. In fact,
a review from 2013 showed that Music therapy, while showing benefits as a supplement to traditional therapy, may be even more effective by itself than standard psychotherapy.
Music seems so universal even some animals seem to have some musical ability. While
surprisingly rare, there are a few animals that can keep a beat, such as parrots. A
study in pigs found many of the same benefits of music as in humans, such as reduced stress and enhanced immune responses. While cats don’t seem to particularly respond to human music, when composing
music specifically for them, there seems to be a significant positive response. This can be done by including pitch ranges that are used more by cats, and tempos that they are more used to.
However, there are still some people who simply don’t enjoy music, a condition known as musical anhedonia, affecting around 5% of the population. These people seem to have a
disconnection between cortical regions for processing sound and subcortical regions related to reward. Given the universality of music, many people consider this to be weird, even a sign of untrustworthiness.