Music and memories Increase longing for the past

Thursday , Posted by Fransisca Milani at 07:06

It is normal for individuals to have a treasure chest of wonderful memories of events in their lives, particularly exciting events that occurred in the distant past. Quite often, a person may reflect on days which are long gone and may even find themselves longing for what they suppose are happier times.
Whenever someone reflects on life — and such reflection results in yearning for another bygone era — the person is suffering from a condition termed nostalgia.

Music can Influence Longing for the Past

A person’s longing for a specific era in the distant past may be increased by the hearing of a song from that era. For example, if one belonging to Generation Y was attending high school in 2000, he might recall the popularity of the Blink-182 song, "All the Small Things." Whether he liked the song or not isn’t particularly relevant. It is the context in which the song is placed that has special meaning.
The person’s mind may be overwhelmed by memories of fellow students singing its lyrics in the school yard, or memories of the actual song being played at the school social that year. Indeed, if such longings occurred between 2005 and 2008 — when Blink 182 was temporarily disbanded — the person might be shattered to learn that they are no longer a musical group. A precious link to the past is thereby destroyed.

Memories can Influence Longing for the Past

If someone visits a place where they grew up but had long since moved, the longing for that time in the person’s history may suddenly become intense. This is a common trigger for nostalgia, even for those without nostalgic predispositions.

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