Hacker News Reader

Comment by irrational | Hacker News Reader

I have musical anhedonia. Music does absolutely nothing for me. No emotional response at all. In my 50+ years of life I have never heard a single piece of music that gives me the chills, unless by that phrase we mean that all the music leaves me cold.

But, to the best of my knowledge this doesn’t extend beyond the realm of music for me. Though, on other odd thing about me is that I do not dream at night. At least, I’ve never woken up and remembered dreaming. I do have a vivid imagination during the day. I’m not sure if the non-music and non-dreaming are related or not. Other than those two things, I think I’m completely normal.

View on HN

This is quite fascinating. Would love to hear more.

Have you ever enjoyed any music whatsoever? What about movies? Reading fiction? Looking at art / photography?

I’ve never enjoyed any music. I do enjoy movies, reading fiction, creating and looking at art, etc.

does the addition of a soundtrack help you enjoy movies? surely that is part of the whole package.

Have you ever seen those videos where they take out the music track from a movie clip but leave everything else? The point it to show how much better the music ads to the movie. But it is fine for me without the music. I’d actually prefer it without the music since I find the music often makes it more difficult to understand what people are saying.

Do you enjoy soundscapes in movies? Sometimes I get the chills at the sound of the wind blowing, rain, etc. What Im trying to determine is whether it is music or general sound your brain circuitry doesn’t care to release dopamine..

Is it any kind of music? There are so many kinds of music in the world, perhaps one of them resonates with you?

For me, it is very different. Almost any genre of music can move me. As for dreams I can even dream when I’m only half asleep. Not sure there is a connection.

I’ve never heard any sort of music that moves me. Maybe there is one, but I haven’t heard it yet.

You are not alone. I too do not feel any kind of emotional influence from music, at least not any different than it would be if the words were read.

I do however dream at night 10-12 dreams a night.

Thanks for sharing. I wrongly assumed that it could not come isolated. The specificity makes even more interesting.

If you have resources to share beyond your own experience, they'd be welcome.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com