Imagine walking down a road when you suddenly notice a photograph of Ayub Bachchu or hear one of his songs playing softly from a nearby music box. Almost instantly, does a familiar melody begin to echo in your head? Do you catch yourself silently humming a line such as “Ei rupali guitar fele…” or “Hashte dekho gaite dekho…” without even trying?
If this has happened to you, then you have experienced what scientists describe as involuntary musical imagery. In everyday terms, this phenomenon is more widely known as an earworm. Research suggests that more than 90 per cent of people across the world encounter this experience at some stage in their lives. In recent years, researchers have started to examine why certain songs become lodged in our minds and the mechanisms that cause this to happen.
Studies indicate that the part of a song most likely to get stuck is the section that repeats frequently without a noticeable pause. A familiar example is a recurring portion of Ayub Bachchu’s song “Shei Tumi”. The same pattern applies to songs by many other artists. In simple language, when a particular line or tune is repeatedly recalled or hummed internally, it can easily turn into an earworm. Children’s songs such as “Baby Shark, doo doo doo” demonstrate this effect clearly because of their strong repetition. Similarly, newly released and heavily promoted songs, including those from Coke Studio Bangla, often find their way into people’s minds and remain there.
The human brain does not store music in a straight, chronological order like a tape recorder playing from start to finish. Instead, songs are arranged in small mental ‘pockets’ based on familiarity and similarity. These pockets are connected through various mental cues. An earworm can be triggered by recently hearing a song, encountering a word or image related to it, or listening to another tune with a similar melody. Personal habits also influence this process. For instance, if someone listens to music every morning while travelling by bus, a fragment of a song may still play in their mind even on a day when no music is heard at all.
At a deeper level, this experience is connected to a specific brain system known as the default mode network. This network becomes active when we daydream or allow our thoughts to wander freely. During such moments, the default mode network may randomly select a piece of music and replay it internally.
Some people find earworms enjoyable, while others experience them as annoying or distracting. To reduce their impact, the default mode network needs to be occupied with other activities. One possible method is to sing the song out loud in front of others, as social interaction can reduce the network’s activity, even though this may feel uncomfortable. Another option is to replace the stuck tune with a different song that has less repetition. Atlassian, a software company, has even developed a 40-second audio track designed to help remove earworms. If none of these approaches work, the final suggestion is to listen to a wide range of music or simply accept and grow fond of the song that refuses to leave the mind.
Source: Science Alert