By Harriet Mallinson | Published on July 13, 2017
If music be the love of food, play on… that’s what Shakespeare said, right?
Perhaps not, but it turns out that music and food appreciation go much more hand in hand than many of us previously thought.
Certain sounds can alter the way we taste, with different music styles lending surprisingly varied flavors to the same food.
Alex James is the host of annual UK music and food festival, The Big Feastival. The Blur bassist met with Dr Ophelia Deroy, a cognitive neuroscientist and Deputy Director at The Royal Institute of Philosophy, London, to discover first-hand how our music choices can affect the way we taste.
English musician Alex James and cognitive neuroscientist Dr Ophelia Deroy
Oli Baba’s halloumi fries, which are sprinkled with fresh pomegranate seeds and seasoning.
A video shows Alex trying out the dishes of different street food vendors while listening to a selection of music styles, from upbeat and loud to slow and melodic.
When the correct combination of food and music is finally found, the overall experience is enhanced and positive memories made stronger, the taste test proves.
“A change in music, whether it’s pitch, tempo, volume or instrumental, actually alters our wider perceptions, even in a single bite,” explains Dr Deroy.
“When slow, relaxed music is played and people are asked to describe what they taste, we find the answers are detailed and descriptive. When we ramp up the beats per minute, the fast music encourages faster chewing and people are less likely to pick up on all the flavours in the dish.”
The research shows that high-pitched music can bring out fruity and citrus notes in a dish, as sampled by Alex with halloumi fries sprinkled with fresh pomegranate seeds and seasoning.
Dark flavours – such as the velvety chocolate accompanying churros – are intensified with the addition of deep and heavy bass in a song.
Furthermore, the individual elements in a pulled pork dish become more obvious to Alex as the music slows which, according to the research, will strengthen his memory of the overall tasting experience.
Churros covered in velvety chocolate from Churros GarciaÂ
Alex enjoys listening to music while sampling Breddos Tacos’ pulled pork dishÂ
Spice, meanwhile, will be amplified by loud music. “Some spices stimulate your facial nerves and lips, and these are the same mechanical vibrations that loud music produces,†says Dr Deroy. “The two elements combined make for a very spicy experience!”
So, what did Alex think? “I wasn’t sure I would notice a difference between the flavours, but it really worked,†he enthuses. “The combination of good music and delicious food has always brought me great joy, especially through the festival, and this just goes to show that if you can get that perfect match, you’re onto a real winner!”
Food for thought next time you invite a date back for dinner and want to play a mood-appropriate tune on Spotify…
Harriet is Editor of MACROS and perfectly capable of eating an entire log of goat’s cheese in one sitting.
