Choirs

(see fashion system, Ubuntu and other keywords)

Individuality within the whole

1. (It's annoying when individual voices stand out as better than the others).
   • We need discipline, but not too much.
   • A crowd of identical voices would not sound like a real choir.
2. The singers experience bliss when each blends their unique sound into the whole.
3. Similar principles apply to fashion design (La Mode v. Individual choice)

Science & benefits

1. Making music exercises the brain and body.
2. Singing improves breathing, posture and muscle tension. It can reduce anxiety and pain.
3. By lowering cortisol levels and by releasing β-endorphin, dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin it can be a mood enhancer.
4. By boosting Immunoglobin A, music may also help to keep the immune system healthy.
5. These effects are also likely to be influenced by changes in our sense of social closeness with others.

READING

1. Dopamine

dopamine pathways in the brain help to motivate behaviour associated with reward. The anticipation of most types of rewards increases the level of dopamine in the brain, and many addictive drugs increase dopamine release or block its reuptake into neurons following release. Other brain dopamine pathways are involved in motor control and in controlling the release of various hormones. These pathways and cell groups form a dopamine system which is neuromodulatory.

• Weber, N. and Ritch, E., 2022, November. The role of impulse buying on fast fashion consumers’ emotions and behaviours. In Global Fashion Conference 2022 (p. 5). Global Fashion Conference.

1. Serotonin
   • Robertson-Gillam, K., 2014. Reducing major depression in mid to later life with a choir therapy program: A mixed methods study (Doctoral dissertation, University of Western Sydney (Australia))
   • Sláviková, Z. and Králová, E., 2021. Emotions in music and their impact on the emotions of percipients: research on human voice and singing. Review of Artistic Education, 21(1), pp.1-11.
2. Endorphins
   • Kang, J., Scholp, A. and Jiang, J.J., 2018. A review of the physiological effects and mechanisms of singing. Journal of Voice, 32(4), pp.390-395.
   • Weinstein, D., Launay, J., Pearce, E., Dunbar, R.I. and Stewart, L., 2016. Singing and social bonding: changes in connectivity and pain threshold as a function of group size. Evolution and Human Behavior, 37(2), pp.152-158.
3. Oxytocin
   • Fukui, H. and Toyoshima, K., 2023. Testosterone, oxytocin and co-operation: A hypothesis for the origin and function of music. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, p.1055827.