Sweet tune, sweeter bite.
A University of Bristol brainiac has created a song that actually makes chocolate taste even better when listening to it.
After doing 60 years of research, which found that music’s pitch, speed and key can trick the brain into thinking something, particularly sweet treats taste more decadent than they already do, as per SWNS — Dr. Natalie Hyacinth, a composer and sound expert, created a musical track meant to be listened to while eating a sweet treat to make the experience that much better.
Hyacinth discovered that the brain does a party trick called “multisensory integration,” where senses start to mingle.
Pair chocolate or sweet fruit with a tune, and the brain turns dessert into a full-blown orchestration. Think of it as your senses having a jam session.
Her research found that silky, more lush tunes in a major key make chocolate taste creamier and sweeter, while sharp notes crank up the bitter bite — and fast beats are best left to fast food.
Galaxy Chocolate put the science to work with the scientist commissioned 90-second track, “Sweetest Melody” — a 78-BPM track designed to melt in your ears during the same amount of time that the chocolate melts on your tongue.
Think piano for sweetness, strings for silkiness and a harp to make it all go down smoothly. The song is now streaming on YouTube and Spotify.
Hyacinth noted that this initiative demonstrates how “enjoying chocolate can be a multisensory experience that goes beyond taste to engage all senses.”
She added that the “power of music to enhance our enjoyment of chocolate is a thrilling prospect.”
The inspiration for the track came after a poll of 2,000 Brits was taken, which discovered that 37% swear by a sweet treat for “me time” — and 56% crank up the tunes to chill out.
Galaxy’s brand director, Romi Mackiewicz, said the goal is to turn chocolate into “a symphony for the senses” by pairing it with music.
And she’s not alone in banking on music to soothe the soul. Earlier this spring, The Post reported on the eight-minute ambient track “Weightless” by British band Marconi Union, touted as a sonic sedative.
The song was specifically engineered to de-stress listeners — and science backs it up.
In a study by Mindlab International, participants tackling complex puzzles while hooked up to biometric sensors saw anxiety plummet 65% when “Weightless,” originally released in 2014, played.
Dr. Steven Allder, consulting neurologist at Re: Cognition Health, told Parade that the trippy track kicks off at 60 BPM — matching your resting heart rate — then drifts down to 50, syncing with your body like a lullaby for your nerves.
However, if you’re looking to zone in instead of zoning out, The Post also reported on neuroscientist Friederike Fabritius putting her money on Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Goldberg Variations.”
Her trick, as explained to Parade: make your brain Pavlovian — hear one tune, and boom, deep work mode activated.
Dr. Christina Agvent also pointed to a OnePoll study for online university CSU Global, noting that “listening to music while studying can be an extremely helpful tool for some students in improving their focus.”
The effect is especially strong among younger listeners, with nearly 60% of Gen Z students saying they plug in to hit the books.
Read the full article here
