Musical tastes refine with age, study finds
A 15-year study shows that musical taste becomes more refined with age. Younger listeners follow trends, while older listeners prefer personal, nostalgic music.
Why it matters
- First scientific evidence of how musical tastes change over time.
- Important for music recommendation systems to understand these changes.
By the numbers
- Study analyzed data from over 40,000 users and more than 542 million plays of over 1 million different songs over 15 years.
The big picture
- Musical tastes evolve throughout life, influenced by nostalgia and personal experiences.
- Younger listeners explore a wide range of music, while older listeners prefer familiar and nostalgic music.
What they're saying
- Skepticism about the study's methodology based on music streaming data.
- Agreement that nostalgia plays a big role in musical tastes.
Caveats
- Study based on music streaming data, which might not accurately reflect human psychology.
What’s next
- Music recommendation systems like Spotify might need to adjust their algorithms to account for age-related changes in musical tastes.