Instru(mental)

How can music serve as a social surrogate when we can't directly interact with others? This episode explores how listening to music can serve as a social proxy and provides ideas for how to strengthen your social …

How can the fields of music therapy and music cognition strengthen each other? This episode features a conversation with music therapist Daniel …

This episode features an interview with Jessica Riley, a soon-to-be music therapist who started her career in music neuroscience. We talk about how …

How do our ears and brains take in and process sound? This episode covers the basics of how we hear starting with sound wave all the way to the primary auditory cortex. Learn how music therapists work with individuals …

How can individual musical elements impact our music listening experiences? This episode is a quick dive into how melody and lyrics in a song impact the emotional intensity of music. Learn how you can make more …

How do certain songs become intertwined with our personal memories? This episode explores the musical reminiscence bump, how our musical preferences …

Does music release dopamine? And how can music be interpreted as a reward? This episode uncovers how reward circuitry in our brain can be activated when we listen to music. Learn how the interactions between music and …

Why are some people tone deaf? This episode explores a musical disorder called congenital amusia, in which people have trouble processing the pitch …

How does music help us deal with death? This episode covers research that gives us insights into how music can lessen death anxiety and then discusses three ways that music is used in hospice care to support individuals …

Do our musical tastes reflect our personalities? This episode dives into research about how the Big Five personality factors might influence what music we like. Along the way, learn what you may able to know about a …

Can music impact how we shop? This mini-episode explores how music can unconsciously influence our decisions of what to buy and how much money we spend in retail settings. Get the highlights of how music can impact our …

How does music impact how we move? Can music help us exercise more efficiently? This episode dives into research that explains what's happening in your spinal cord and brain when you're listening to music during a run …

How do babies perceive music? Infants aren't blank musical slates, they're actually pretty sophisticated music listeners. This episode highlights how we're all built to process music from birth, and how this innate …

The Mozart effect has gotten a lot of hype (and criticism) the past few decades...what's the real story? This episode breaks down the research that led to the Mozart effect being debunked. Even though those Mozart baby …

Music often brings people together whether through dancing, choirs, or bands. How exactly does music help build stronger relationships, even among strangers? This episode dives into research behind musical entrainment …

Music's ability to impact our emotions is often taken for granted, but how exactly does music influence our feelings? This episode dives into six ways to answer this question and explores how you can strategically use …

The trailer for Instru(mental), a podcast about music and the mind. Listen to dive into music cognition research from a music therapist's perspective and come away with practical takeways to apply what you learned in …