Studies have shown that music played directly to the womb can influence the baby in many ways and potentially give the child a head start in terms of learning and development:
Music Aids Development in the Womb
Rhythm is a key component to music and most types of music, at their basic root, are attempts to create these kinds of primal patterns. The most obvious example is the drum, which emulates heartbeat and steady patterns in most music.If we think about rhythm and its different manifestations in utero, we can find it expressed in several ways. Rhythm exists in the spontaneous movements of the fetus, in intrauterine breathing movements, heart rate, sucking and kicking, in states of alertness and quiet, and partly in reaction to what is heard, for example the mother's heart, breathing variations, and activities.
The article itself is a bit out there (I think associating a mother's grief with the music she played and stating that those things were conveyed to the baby is reaching) but it does address some key scientific points regarding how music and other noises can stimulate the fetus. There are dozens of studies indicating that a fetus can react to sounds heard outside the womb: that it recognizes both mother's and father's voices; that it may in fact recognize music which has been played and that those early sounds can influence musical tastes later.
Another article addressing this phenomena, known as the Mozart Effect
There is, however, no proof that playing music before the baby is born will grant it any hard advantages when it comes to advanced intelligence.
Can people's moods be influenced by music? Certainly! I keep differing play lists for my varied types of stories and writing. Depending upon the mood for that part of the story or the type of story in general, I may select one or another. This helps especially if I want to write but can't for some reason or if I need the ambiance to create the scene I want. Playing alternative and indie music, for instance, won't help much if I'm working on an old-style western. Playing gospel doesn't work if I'm dealing with a fantasy story.
For me, music has to be evocative of something with which I can identify. For that reason, I don't enjoy many of the currently popular Top 40 type hits or rap music. The lyrics or the melody has to speak to something inside me, to form a common bond. Music, for me, is also a deeply spiritual experience. I connect with my religious and spiritual roots through the music which I select. Even though I'm not Christian, I still experience what I believe is a basic, evisceral response to the old gospel spirituals. There's something primal there which just demands emotional response.
Like anything else, music is simply one factor in human behavior. Unless it's got sub-sonic hypnotic messages embedded in it or frequencies which require a particular response (both of which are illegal --- at least here in the US --- for obvious reasons) the music itself cannot be held responsible for what someone does. It's more likely that the music makers as role models have not provided the proper role model image for the age group when problems occur or that an adult did not properly oversee media interactions in order to determine what is appropriate.
Forensics, criminal psychology, and criminology are hobbies of mine (I like to read about serial killers, particularly what makes them such) and I have never once come across a case in which the person claimed that music drove them to commit their crimes. Quite a few, however, have reported the opposite: that some types of music will actually mute or defer their response for a time.
Personally, I'd rather lose my sight or any other sense than never have access to music again. It's one of the basic staples of my existence. I'm also a synesthete (someone with a kind of sixth sense) so that music will often have tastes, shapes, colors, scents, and other sensual input not normally attributed to the sense of hearing. For me, listening to music augments my world. Zydeco and Cajun jazz taste like gumbo. The old country-western music tastes like dust and smells like sun warmed rock. Brass creates a spectrum of blue in my vision. Pianos taste like an ice cream headache. I often use these impressions to enhance my total writing experience. The music which creates these sensations is one of the reasons I can so completely involve all five senses in my writing.
On the other hand, this article links listening to pop music to the potential for depression in teens.
