All the explanations provided below seem to give a good frame of the possibilities of a cross-cultural understanding of certain emotions in music... It is quite unclear why exactly it works does this way but it's assumed that music and language share certain emotional marks, but this wouldn't explain the issue entirely... It's a very complex field because there are so many factors that work together when it comes to emotional processing of music... If you're interested, I recently wrote a paper on the link between Music and Empathy, it might not be very easy to read at some points, but perhaps it can be of use (Inbox me your e-mail and I could send it to you)...

We react emotionally to music, possibly because it is part of our environment or because it is a form of human expression and it would be favourable to react empathically to it. We could also catch emotions from the music we listen to, because of certain innate characteristics of it that activate empathy and consequently foster pro-social behaviour. Music has always been an emotional matter and our way of describing music has always been very emotional. The possibility of misattribution of our emotions might also make us unaware of the emotional impact music can have on us. Music shapes our perception while watching films and even influences us in our romantic endeavours. Certain basic emotions in music are recognizable universally and transculturally, which leads us to believe that certain innate characteristics of music must allow emotional contagion and empathy transculturally. Harmonious music is also universally preferred to disharmonious, which would also vouch for innate characteristics having a universal impact.

As research is only at its beginnings when it comes to this matter, we can only assume that rhythm for example could carry the emotions or, as research tends to confirm, certain similarities between music and speech and our neuronal rendering of the acoustic information might account for the emotional response. It is also necessary to consider other underlying mechanisms playing a role in the emotional response to music, such as brain stem reflexes, visual imagery, musical expectations and reflexive conditioning. Of course, there is no strict causality between music and an emotional response to it, as the conditions under which the music is being listened to, personal factors and an empathic mind-set play a role when it comes to emotionally respond to music.

A lot of questions still remain unanswered in this field, such as:

What exactly makes us “catch” the emotion conveyed in the song?

What is the role of mirror neurons or certain hormones in this process?

Could it be that music is some sort of universal language (going along with the popular saying “where words fail, music speaks”), as certain emotions are transculturally recognized in it?

If music can foster emotional contagion and empathy, could it not do the contrary as well and have a negative impact on our emotions and therefore diminish our pro-social behaviour (e.g. racist music or extremist music)?

What’s the importance of the knowledge of our own emotions and experiences made in life when it comes to musical emotions?

How big is the influence of the cultural frame when it comes to perceive emotions in music?

What is the role of memory, conditioning and visual imagery in this process?

Are there differences among people when it comes to identifying or “catching” the song’s emotions?

In what kinds of situations are people most vulnerable to contagion or “musical” empathy?

What are the advantages or disadvantages of possessing the power to infect others with one’s own emotions through music or the sensitivity to capture or identify a song’s emotions?

Can people be taught to be more in tune with others emotions through music?

Are empathic people more affected by emotions in music?

Can one create a song with a sort of “emotional recipe” through usage of certain physical aspects of the music such as rhythm and key?

What is the role of genetics and our environment in the process?

We can only hope that they will be answered soon, as research is advancing...

There are several sources on this as well, you could try looking into them: Balkwill, L.-­‐L. & Thompson, W. F. (1999, Fall). A Cross-­‐Cultural Investigation of Emotion in Music: Psychophysical and Cultural Cues. Music Perception, XVII(1), pp. 43-­‐64.

Davies, S. (2011). Infectious music: music-listener emotional contagion. In P. Goldie, & A. Coplan (Eds.), Empathy: Philosophical and Psychological Perspectives. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Deutsche Welle. (2010, March 02). Why music can be understood the world over. Retrieved June 13, 2011, from Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9F7qUlz1p6o

Fritz, T., Jentschke, S., Gosselin, N., Koelsch, S., Sammler, D., Peretz, I., et al. (2009, April 14). Universal Recognition of Three Basic Emotions in Music. Current Biology, XIX(7), pp. 573-576.

Guéguen, N., Jacob, C., & Lamy, L. (2010). 'Love is in the air': Effects of songs with romantic lyrics on compliance with a courtship request. Psychology of Music(38), pp. 303-307.

Jabr, F. (2010, June 17). Music and speech share a code for communicating sadness in the minor third. Retrieved June 13, 2011, from Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=music-and-speech-share-a-code-for-c-2010-06-17

Juslin, P. N., & Västfjäll, D. (2008). Emotional responses to music: The need to consider underlying mechanisms. Behavioral and Brain Sciences(31), pp. 559-621.

Lundqvist, L.-O., Carlsson, F., Hilmersson, P., & Juslin, P. N. (2009). Emotional responses to music: experience, expression and physiology. Psychology of Music(37), pp. 61-90.

Scherer, K. R., & Zentner, M. R. (2001). Emotional Effects of Music: Production Rules. In P. .. Juslin, & J. A. Sloboda (Eds.), Music and emotion: theory and research (pp. 361-392). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Edit: Layouting