23 Apr Has science proved why women go ga-ga over musicians?
When you think of talented male musicians who play complex music–like John Mayer, Prince and Jack White–it probably doesn’t surprise you that legions of female fans go ga-ga over them.
But, did you know a man’s talent for churning out complex tunes turns on women more during a very specific point in our cycle?
According to a new study of nearly 1,500 women from the UK’s University of Sussex, during ovulation, heterosexual women are more attracted to male musicians who create complex musical arrangements over those who stick to simple rhythms (like folk tunes or the blues).
However, despite the rise in sexual attraction, these music men may not want to expect to stick around for long. When the women in the study were asked which they would prefer for a short-term fling during their fertile phase, they were far more likely to pick the advanced musicians for a quick tryst over simpler songsters.
Explaining the outcomes, study author Benjamin Charlton, Ph.D., suggests that women who are in the most fertile phase of their cycle are likely picking up on cues in complex music that indicate the musician is intelligent and in good physical condition–and would, therefore, pass along good genes if they got pregnant.
However, the same music may also be sending cues that these guys are probably not the most reliable partners, making them less ideal for a permanent pair-up.
While this connection between music and fertility may be new to most of us, this first-of-its-kind study actually supports a theory put forth over 140 years ago by the famed British scientist Charles Darwin who proposed that music-making in both birds and humans is primarily nature’s way of matchmaking and may explain one key reason we make music at all.
As someone happily married to an extremely talented musician, I can only say his music worked magic on me….
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