SOCIOLINGUISTICS MAKES MUSIC

Beatrice Cale

Two traits that all humans share, no matter where on earth they live, are language and music. We are all equals in that regard and it can be stated, as a matter of fact, that music is universal.

By learning a folk tune from the most remote corner of the world and singing the words and music, you are given access into that world, a world you may never have known otherwise. 

Today, orbiting 10 billion miles from earth, the Voyager space probe contains a most precious cargo hurtling through the universe, a 90-minute mixtape of music from every part of the globe. It includes such music as Mozart, Peruvian panpipes, Bulgarian chants and Indian raga vocals, amongst many other recordings.  If extraterrestrials want to get to know us earthlings, it will be through our music.

Recent studies have found that music and speech mechanisms both possess many aspects in common, and that several neural modules are similarly involved in speech and music (Tallal and Gaab, 2006).  Music is also beneficial for improving language functions. Musical expertise facilitates the learning of both linguistic and musical structures. Implicitly acquired knowledge and memory, and their associated neural structures, are cohesively active in the acquisition of linguistic or musical grammar. 

The combination of a musical score and lyrics working together demonstrates a powerful force. Think of your favourite songs in any language. You could probably sing all the words now, easily and without much effort. It’s magic!

I can sing in multiple languages. The learning acquisition of those songs and the repetition process of the words over and over again invested in my brain a familiarity with each specific language. In addition, accents are fun! I grew up surrounded by accents. I love the “guess that accent game” and find that while most accents are easily determined, others are more challenging to place. 

Once, in a restaurant in Rome, the waiter spoke with an intriguing inflection of speech. I confessed to this young chap that I couldn’t place his accent. He offered that he was from Romania. “Oh, that’s a tricky one,” I admitted. Indeed, although Romania is in eastern Europe, the language is derived from Latin, making the melange Slavic on Moldavan Romance.

“I love all Romanian music,”  I said truthfully, “it is excellent”. He concurred and seemed pleased. Thus encouraged, I began singing a song I knew, a traditional Romanian folk song about longing for your land and missing your mother. My women’s choir had learnt this song, and it’s a beauty. Well, before you know it, this poor fellow broke out into tears. He was crying because of the song!  “I’m happy and sad at the same time,” he declared, and proceeded to treat us to free drinks on the house.  

Now, if that’s not the power of music, what is?

As an aside, speaking of the power of words and music, this week the Montreal Canadiens played a hockey game in Manitoba against the Winnipeg Jets. The national anthem, “O Canada” precedes every match. At this event, it was sung solely in English, which we found to be very insulting.  Hello/ Bonjour mon pays?! The bilingual French/English lyrics are a firm signal of inclusion. Linguistic duality is a foundational core of Canada and there was a missed opportunity. In fact, it indicated a total lack of respect towards the Franco-Manitobans and to any Francophone in the entire country. 

Questions

You consider yourself  proficient at learning languages, do you also have a talent with music?

What tunes would you choose for the soundtrack of your life? 

Tallal P., Gaab N. (2006). Dynamic auditory processing, musical experience and language development. Trends Neurosci. 29, 382–39010.1016/j.tins.2006.06.003 [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]