Music and heart rate. Physiological effects from listening to music in different tempos

Music has the power to elicit physiological responses in humans. One assumes that fast music tempo elicit faster heart rate and respiration rate and slower music tempos elicit slower respiration and heart rate. This presumption that music could alter physiological responses was tested in this study by playing different tempos to the participants while measuring respiration and heart rate. Six different music tempos from 40 beats per minute to 200 beats per minute were presented as musical stimuli. Thirteen piano music pieces were composed at the Institute of Biology and Medical Psychology (IBMP) at the University of Bergen (UiB). The stimuli were recorded and presented in a pseudo-randomised order. White noise served as a control stimuli and was played between each stimulus. 36 participants listened to these novel music stimuli, while heart rate and respiration rate was measured. The current study found a quadratic relationship between heart rate and music tempo, and a linear relationship between respiration and music tempo. Music tempo increased heart rate up to 136 beats per minutes, after that heart rate dropped. While respiration linearly increased up to 200 beats per minute. The hypothesis was confirmed, as this study concluded with an alteration of physiological responses while listening to different music tempos