In 2009, archaeologists excavating a cave in southern Germany discovered a flute carved from a vulture’s wing bone. The delicate artifact is the oldest known musical instrument on earth which indicates that people have been making music for over 40,000 years. Research proves making music is a universal human trait that dates back 35, 000 to 40,000 years.  Although we can’t be sure exactly when human beings began listening to music. Scientists have proved listening to music benefits all living beings – human, plants, birds, and animals.

Most people get tears, chills, tingles while hearing music. These are physiological responses which activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the parasympathetic nervous system occurs in quiet “rest and digest” conditions. Studies have shown that around 25% of the population experience this reaction to music.

Music activates many parts of our brain, including the so-called limbic system of the brain. It is the part of the brain involved in our behavioural and emotional responses to world around us. Limbic system is involved in motivation, passion, learning, and memory. In fact, music is known to stimulate almost every part of the brain. One of the most important functions of music is to create a feeling of organization or social connectedness.

Evolutionary scientists say human beings may have developed a dependence on music as a communication tool because our ancestors descended from the stone age. Music remains a powerful way of uniting people. Neanderthals (an extinct species of human who lived in ice-age) probably didn’t have the vocal cords or cognitive capacity for complex verbal communication. That’s something that developed with humans, and researchers think music is a direct product of this cognitive development. In fact, music is even seen as a form of language by many anthropologists.

Rhythmic entrainment: This refers to a process whereby an emotion is evoked by a piece of music because a powerful, external rhythm in the music influences some internal bodily rhythm of the listener e.g. heart rate. For example, the National Anthem connects us with our nationality, we love our country, therefore we feel proud that we are the people of this country. Our National Anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ infuses pride and patriotism in us. The anthem highlights India’s national heritage and demonstrates patriotism and loyalty to one’s country.

Protest songs stir a sense of shared purpose during marches. Protest songs are often situational, having been associated with a social movement through context.  For example, in Dileep Kumar starrer movie Shaheed (1948) “Watan ki raah me, watan ke naujawan shaheed ho” song motivated the independence movement in hearts of thousands of youngsters.  

Hymns build group identity in houses and worship in social gatherings of worship. For example, ‘Bhaj Govindam’ which defines the composition and gives it its name invokes the almighty in the aspect of supreme god Shree Krishna; it is therefore very popular not only with Sri Adi Shankaracharya’s immediate followers but all Hindus.

Love songs help prospective partners bond during courtship. For example, ‘pal pal dil ke paas’ sung by Kishore Kumar from film Blackmail (1973) lifts the soul and many listeners get goosebumps while listening to the song.  The picturisation, the lyrics, the tune everything   is superb. Music has a powerful way of evoking emotions and connecting with our feelings. The theme of love, longing, and relationships are universal, and listeners find comfort or enjoyment in exploring these emotions through music, even if they are not currently experiencing them in their personal lives. Music allows you to connect with the universal human experience of love and emotions.

Lullabies enable parents and infants to develop secure attachments. Lullabies calm down babies and put them to sleep. It is a soothing song with the perfect balance of rocking music that lures the baby into sleep. Nursery rhymes have been a time-tested bedtime routine by parents over the years. Babies respond to lullabies; they calm down because they feel secured. “Surmai akhiyon me” from film Sadma (1983) is a beautiful lullaby sung by K.J.Yesudas is evergreen song today after 4 decades.

Doctors at Johns Hopkins suggest listening to music to stimulate our brain. Scientists know that listening to music engages our brain; they can see the active areas light up in MRI scans. Researchers have proved that listening to music can motivate people wanting to learn more. A 2019 study has proved that people were more motivated to learn when they were told that they would listen to a song as their reward. Music improves memory.  Music memory is one of the brain functions most resistant to dementia. That’s why some caregivers have had success using music to calm dementia patients and build trusting connections with them.

Conclusion

Music is universal.  It is considered the universal language. The reason is that it exists in every society, with and without words. 

Music is universal without any boundary; it influences people emotionally and physically in various ways. It helps the cognitive development of infants and children, it helps provide self-expression. Musical education has been shown to help improve intellectual development and ability. Numerous studies have been conducted to show that individual personality can have an effect on musical preference. These studies are concluded mostly using meta-analytics (the statistical procedure for combining data from multiple studies) they have shown that personality in itself explains little discrepancy in music preferences. These studies are not limited to Western or American culture, as they have been conducted with significant results in countries all over the world, including Japan, Germany, and Spain. We play a song, listen it, start over, listen and repeat: there are some songs you can listen to over and over again. Why? There are no perfect answers, but we all know that some musical pieces make us feel explicit, there are gushing feelings coming up which take us to a higher plane, it elicits certain memories that transport us back in time, it gushes back some nostalgia. And sometimes, a song is just plain catchy. Some songs remain immortal because of their catchy tunes or catchy lyrics. Some songs have remained immortal despite their age. The fact is that certain songs are part of our identity. I never feel satisfied listening to few songs; one of them is this song ‘Mera man tera pyasa….’ I can’t listen to it just once; I play this song again and again. This is a magical number to me; the lyrics are amazingly penned by Neeraj, melody is awesome and Mohammed Rafi touches the heart. I listen to it whenever I feel low.

Certain songs resonate with us; Kenneth Aigen, an associate professor in music therapy at New York University says that “Music is the way that we create our personal identity, its part of our identity construction. Some people say you are what you eat. In a lot of ways, you are what you play or you are what you listen to.” Aigen explained that a song’s lyrics, its orchestra, beats and other characteristics can personify different feelings and attitudes that develop our sense of identity. He further said that each time we re-experience our favorite music, we’re sort of reinforcing our sense of who we are, where we belong, what we value. This is a profound truth.

Certain songs can connect us to a time in our past because they carry a certain sentiment; for example, let’s say you liked a song at your age of twelve for it gave you adrenalin boost to study and score highest marks, and you achieved it, whenever you listen to a song, that feeling of that period in your life comes back intact. The sound is abstract enough to go directly to the part of your brain that governs the feeling.

My favorite genre in music is romantic classical music, because the singers express their feelings. The songs consist of rich lyrics. I hold Mohammed Rafisab in high esteem, for me, he is not less than ‘God’ when it comes to Hindi film songs. I love Mohammed Rafi’s few songs, because they are so classy, and I feel very nostalgic listening to them. In my opinion, in certain movies for songs when he lent his voice, even ordinary lyricists came across as poets because of his divine voice. He gave an identity to their work. He boosted the image of average actors. Rafi’s singing added to the success of many films.  I give here below some very classy songs of Rafisab:

Baar baar dekho, Movie Chaina Town (1962)
Singer: Mohammed Rafi, Lyricist: Majrooh Sultanpuri, Music Director: Ravi

Pukarata chala hoon mein, Movie: Mere Sanam (1965)
Singer: Mohammed Rafi, Lyricist: Mahrooh Sultanpuri, Music Director: O.P.Nayyar

Ek haseen sham ko dil mera
Movie: Dulhan ek raat ki (1966) Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Lyricist: Raja Mehadi Ali Khan, Music Director: Madan Mohan

Chale the saath milkar
Movie: Haseena maan jayegi (1968) Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Lyricist:  Akhtar Romani, Music Director: Kalyanji-Ananadji

Mera man tera pyasa, Movie: Gambler (1971)
Singer: Mohammed Rafi, Lyricist: Neeraj, Music Director: S.D.Burman

Why people go to theatre to watch qawwalis? Sometimes viewers just go to watch the qawwali numbers and come out of the theatre. With just few instruments, few singers or a single singer qawwali creates a complex stream of synchronised hand-clapping; a qawwali group can produce some of the most ecstatic sounds, which memorizes the crowd. The rhythm is full of exuberance of vocals, steadily repeated, mantra-like chanting pattern. There is spontaneity in the qawwali.  One needs to have an ear to listen and understand this genre of music.

Qawwalis give meaningful rendition to the performance which is full of emotions. Its melody also has a great influence on the emotional state of listeners. The qawwali performance usually begins after the evening and lasts all night until the wee hours of morning. The word qawwali means “words” worthy of remembrance, and as such the qawwali traditionally has a devotional aspect in praise of Almighty. We usually see the dholak, table, sarangi, sitar, shehnai and jaltarang accompanying the qawwalis. Although a qaawwali was traditionally sung by men only, as the society progressed, both men and women started enjoying and performing quawwali.

Unlike in Hindustani classical music, while taal and raagaa usage is the same, the quawwali places a greater emphasis on the poetic text and the delivery of its message than on musical aspect. Bollywood has changed the style, presentation and libretto of qawwalis; it has been manifested in many varieties. For instance in the late 50s, 60s, 70s the qawwali became synonymous with a musical debate, almost a verbal battle.

Here’s our list of Bollywood’s evergreen and greatest qawwalis:

Humen to loot liya milke hoosnwalone

Al Hilal 1958; Singer: Ismail Azad, Music Director: Bulo C. Rani

Na toh carvan ki talash hai

Barsat ki ek raat 1960, Singers: Asha Bhosale, Manna Dey, Sudha Malhotra, Shiv Dayal. Music Director: Roshan

Sharma Ke Yeh kyo pardanashi

Chaudhvin Ka Chand 1960:  singers: Shamshad Begum & Asha Bhosale, Music Director: Ravi

Teri mehfil mein quismat ajmane

Mughal-e-Azam 1960: Singers: Shmsahd Begum & Lata Mangeshkar, Music Director: Naushad

Nigahen Milane Ko Jee Chahta Hai

Dil Hi To Hai (1963):  Asha Bhosale, Music Director: Roshan

Laga Chunari Me Daag

Dil hi toh hai 1963 , Singer: Manna Dey, Music Director: Roshan

Jaan-e-man ek nazar dekh le

Mere Mehboob 1963, Singers:  Lata Mangeshkar& Asha Bhosle, Music Director: Naushad

2. Ae Meri Zoharajabeen, Tuzhe Maloom Nahin

3. Film Waqt 1965, Singer: Manna Dey, Music Director: Ravi

Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosale, Suman Kalyanpur, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Mukesh have been the magnificent pillars of our Hindi film;  their invaluable contribution to playback-singing  is eternal. Their singing has laid the foundation of the ‘Golden era’ of Hindi cinema. This was the era when melody reigned supreme and songs formed an integral and inseparable part of our films. Music directors such as Salil Chowdhary, S.D.Burman, Kalyanji-Anandji, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Roshan gave unmatched music to lyricists such as Pradeep, Bharat Vyas, Sahir Ludhiyanvi, Kaifi Azmi, Sahilendra, Majruh Sultanpuri and many more lyricists penned songs of various human emotions, abundance in nature, human life cycle, flowers, birds, sunrise, sunset, rives, hills, mountains, seasons and so much more. The singers, music directors and lyricists together gave us several incomparable solos and many remarkable duets which are set in in the psyche of every person.

Often in our films one song has been sung by two different playback singers and is woven into the narrative in such a way that they appear at different times in the course of the film depending on the story and the mood of the characters involved. The title song of ‘Raat Aur Din’ (1967) has been heard on radio more in  Lata’s voice than in Mukesh’s and has never lagged behind the male  version. Similarly, Rimzim gire sawan from film Manzil is a twin song sung by Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. There are many classic twin songs sung by both male and by female playback singers. These songs are normally used in Hindi Films with an intention to express similar-sounding sentiments under different circumstances. When two singers sing the same song with little differences may be in tune or lyrics here and there people do lot of comparison in terms of who sang it better….. At times the versions differed – one sad and one happier. In some songs the male version sounds superior while in some the female version sounds better. I give here below five twins – evergreen dual songs:

Rangoli (1962) ‘Choti si ye duniya,pehchaane raaste hain…’

Kishore Kumar gets to sing the happy version while Lata Mangeshkar sings the sad version. Once again, it was Kishore Kumar’s version which hit the popularity charts. Sad version or happy version, Kishore’s magic was unbeatable.

Baat Ek Raat ki (1962) Na tum hume jano, na hum tume jane

This song is sung very melodiously by Hemant Kumar picturised on Dev Anand and by Suman Kalyanpur picturised on Vahida Rehman. Till date this song is considered a timeless cult classic an evergreen beautiful romantic song.

Hum sab ustad hain (1965)  ‘Ajnabi tum jaane pehchaane se…’

In this song, Kishore Kumar gets to sing the sad version thus adding a lot of pathos to his emotions while Lata Mangeshkar’s version is breezier and obviously sung in happier times. But the beautiful tune composed by the duo of Laxmikant-Pyarelal  stands out in Kishore’s voice so much so that for years people were not even aware of the female version.

Chiraag (1969) ‘Teri aankhon ke siva…’

While the happy version is sung by Rafi where Sunil Dutt describes the beauty of Asha Parekh’s eyes, the sad version is sung by Lata after Asha Parekh loses her eyesight in a tragic way. In this song, Rafi’s version became more famous.

Manzil (1979) ‘Rimzim gire sawan’

This melodious composition by R D Burman had two superb versions once again by Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar. While the Lata version picturized in a unique manner on Amitabh Bachchan and Moushmi Chattetjee captures the essence of romance during Mumbai’s monsoon, Kishore Kumar’s version is a simple rendition sung by Amitabh in the film at a friend’s engagement ceremony with just a harmonium to give him company. The kind of popularity attained by Kishore Kumar’s version was phenomenal yet not surprising because there is something so unique about his simple rendition that it touches the soul right away from the very first note of the song. Somehow Lata’s version just could not whip up that kind of emotion in the listener’s hearts and had to settle for the second position.

There are many songs with such great hummable music, but are weaker in lyrics. There are also some songs which have great lyrics but are weaker in music. And, there are songs with good music and good lyrics but are sung pathetically by the singer. While we all would agree that it is music that gives our ears the feel, rhythm, vibrancy etc because music has the power to lift each word of the lyric. However, lyrics give the message of the song. Lyric gives a song its heart. Thus, songs are all about combination of magnificent lyrics with great music composition and we get those master pieces.

One such great inspiring song with soothing music and wonderful lyrics is Cliff Richard’s superb number “Travelling light” the lyrics are wonderful with simple guitar chords and just two-three instrument orchestra.

“Travelling’ Light” remained at No. 1 for five weeks, and was the chart topper in 1950s. It sold 1,600,000 copies worldwide. It was also a number 1 hit in Ireland and Norway. That was the magic it created and remains one of the evergreen tracks even today.

I want to mention one beautiful, soft yet heart touching song from Bollywood here. It’s from Film Anupama (1966) ‘kuch dil ne kaha.’

This classy song expresses the intense feelings of a lady; they are complicated to some extent. Her emotions and feelings are about her contemplation, it is a peep into her desire, fears and her inhibitions. Kaifi Azmi has done such a wonderful job; hats off to Kaifi Azmi for understanding woman’s heart. Hemant Kumar has composed the expressive lyrics without slipping a single note; the song is beautifully set in Raag Bheempalasi in style of Bandish. The singer is Lataji. She has sung this song so poignantly. On screen, Sharmila Tagore has given face to Lata Mangeshkar’s voice. This song oozes a class. This song has it all – touching lyrics, classy tune, melodiously sung by a classy singer and beautifully shot as well.

There is no one single answer whether music is important or lyrics in a song. Sometimes we have seen that a striking melody along with a peppier beat of orchestra can help compensate for weak lyrics.  You can find yourself humming the tune.  Similarly, evocatively good lyrics with a strong message line can help compensate for a weak tune.  I am sure, some lyrics you can’t seem to get out of your mind. Like this song from film Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid “Raindrops keep falling on my head.”

The song is a metaphor for life’s problems, obstacles and challenges; the song explains that there’s no time for sulking and complaining or cribbing about the problems. One just got to move on with life by enduring the challenges with perseverance.

The meaning of the song basically consist in words, they give the song thoughts, emotions and feelings. You might not like a song but its lyrics might be inspiring. Melody also has a great power to uplift the emotions in the song. Sometimes, a particular raga lends a new life to a song. It reminds the listener of certain things, it can make them nostalgic this is how ragas have power to gives lyrics a different stance. And, there are some cases in which the person does not understand the language in which the lyrics are written, so the only way to reflect on the song, to listen to the melody.

The above point can be explained in the sound phenomenon. It is subjective, based on our brain’s understanding of the transducer’s (microphone, radio, transistor) output, our own life experience, and our own preferential ways of deriving knowledge. We try to derive meaning of the words with help of the tune. Don’t we? This is what scientist/philosopher Gregory Bateson has to say on languages “There is no objective experience. All experience is subjective….Our brains make the images that we think, we “perceive”.

I would like to mention another song to clarify my point; it is from film Prempujari (1970) it is phulon ki rang se, dil ki kalam se’ written by poet Neeraj. It is a romantic song, very well composed and soulfully sung by Kishore Kumar. The song is themed on evergreen Dev Anand, like him the song is also evergreen. Though the film didn’t do great business at box office, the songs became a super duper hit.

The song’s lyrics are really splendid and touch the heart. It’s yet another brilliant score by muci director Sachin Dev Burman.  The song is composed mainly in Raga Pahadi and mixed with some other ragas. Pahadi is a popular raga based on folk music. As its name suggests, it originates from the mountainous region of Himalayas. It resembles two other ragas which exude the rich cultural heritage of folk music; one is Mand from the Rajasthan region and Pilu from the Hindi heartland. It is a light raga and resembles more like a ‘dhun’.  This song is so very versatile and expressive that it can be understood by anybody.

Though other parts of the music may give the general feeling or tone of a song i.e. light and happy, or sad and gloomy, romantic and passionate the whole purpose of lyrics is the message itself. If the lyrics don’t provide some form of message then they might as well be either in a language you don’t understand or not exist at all. Although, the music is subjective part of a song which may not be enjoyed by all; therefore, many songs have been redone to fit those other tastes.

Some songs have so much other sound from the instruments that you can’t really hear the words, thus not understanding what the song is about; other songs have the lyrics sung so fast that you can only make out a word here and there. There are also songs that use such poor pronunciations which are misunderstood by listeners. What hooks us – the listeners is the rhythm, interesting grooves, unique melodies and the apparent passion conveyed with various composition and recital techniques. Sometimes lyrics can be overpowering and other times music can be overwhelming.

Pop music puts more of an emphasis on melodies and song-structure, in pop music the lyrics don’t matter all that much; same goes with instrumental jazz and some rock music. But there are songs in classical style in which a huge emphasis is laid on lyrical structure.

Personally, for me, lyrics are most important in a song.  Of course great musicians are of the mindset that to compose a good song, they need to first start with lyrics. The musical world is filled with lyrics lovers who like words, ideas, themes which a good poetry can present. Poetry has been one of the all time greatest expressions of art in world history. For a good song there is a definitive order of priority and rank of what is important lyrics or music. Both are important and vital to a great song; after all music must exist to put the lyrics on display!!