(Really) Feel The Beat: Singing In Groups Synchronizes Heart Rate

When I sing, I usually perform alone.  (In the shower, in my room, in the kitchen…)

But when I have had the opportunities to sing with others, I’ve always felt in sync with the other singers.

But can simply singing the same song synchronize not just your voices, but actual biological processes?

Let’s take, for example, heart rate.

Our hearts aren’t consistent. They don’t beat at a steady rhythm, and the rates of our hearts is continuously accelerating and decelerating. (This is called heart rate variability, or HRV.)

Music beats, on the other hand, are regulated.

Choral singing has been proven to synchronize muscular movements and neural activities in the singers.

The heart is just a big, muscular organ… so how would consistent exposure to music beats affect the heart in an individual, and also in a group?

Researchers in Sweden published a study in Frontiers in Neuroscience (2013), where they put this question to the test.

Participants were placed in groups, and given three simple tasks:

• Hum a single tone and breathe as needed
• Sing a hymn and breathe as needed
• Sing a slow mantra and breathe only between phrases.

These simple phrases above were used in the experiment, and heart rate was constantly measured.

Results showed that singing in groups regulated the singers’ heart rates so that their HRV increased and decreased at exactly the same time… HRV not only became steady in the participants, but also synchronized.

So why is this important?

Dr. Björn Vickhoff, head researcher of the study, explains that the relationships between HRV and respiration has both mentally and physically soothing effects.

“Songs with long phrases achieve the same effect as breathing exercises in yoga.” – Dr. Björn Vickhoff

Less variability in heart rates, a sign of poorer heart health, is usually seen in the elderly and those who are under high stress.

Lower levels of HRV shows that the heart is less capable of adjusting to the body’s changing needs; singing brings a consistent pattern to the changes in heart rate that follows the structure of the music.

The harmonization of heart and breathing patterns could potentially be used in rehabilitation or preventive healthcare.

As a result, singing might help some people control their breathing (and consequently their heart rate) much more effectively.

Who knew?

So whether it’s by yourself in your shower, with others in a choir, or on stage– sing!

(It’s good for your heart.)

http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/130708132737-british-military-choir-singing-story-top.jpg

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/263045.php

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/scicurious-brain/files/2013/07/Screen-shot-2013-07-07-at-9.33.26-PM.png

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/07/09/200390454/when-choirs-sing-many-hearts-beat-as-one

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130708200153.htm

http://healthland.time.com/2013/07/10/many-hearts-one-beat-singing-synchs-up-heart-rates/

Vickhoff et al. “Music structure determines heart rate variability of singers” Frontiers in Psychology, 2013.