A chamber music duo performed for several horses, who seemed curious and relaxed about the unusual concert.
What do animals think of music?
Classical musicians Heidi Rahkonen and Lauri Angervo of the Lapland Chamber Orchestra pondered that eternal question and decided to organise a concert for horses.
The concert was held a few weeks ago in the manège of a riding stable in Rovaniemi, capital of Finnish Lapland.
The main audience were Rahkonen’s horses Timppa, Dino and Croisos Pennonen. The classical duo performed pieces by J.S. Bach, Jean-Baptiste Barrière and Domenico Dragonetti.
When the music began, Croisos Pennonen, a brown Finnhorse gelding, snorted, then approached the musicians with a curious, alert expression. Dino and Timppa followed from a distance. As the music continued, the horses showed signs of relaxation, such as yawning, urinating, and scratching one another.
“Maybe Croisos was wondering what Mom was doing over there with that instrument. Normally, he’s used to me coming over with a snack and going for a ride,” Rahkonen said.
How does science see it?
Scientists have studied how animals react to human music. In one study, music by Bach, Mozart and Debussy was shown to boost serotonin levels in horses.
Music has also been composed specifically for animals. For example, simple, slow tunes have been found to calm dogs in stressful situations. On the other hand, a study carried out in the US in 2011 suggested that rats enjoyed listening to Miles Davis – but only after being administered cocaine.
However, scientists generally remain cautious when drawing conclusions about animals’ reactions to human music.
Niina Heinonen, who was in the audience, reflected on the differences between the sensory worlds of animals and humans.
“We humans imagine that things are always right based on our world of experience, and that that’s it. But we don’t realise that there’s a huge other side to what animals sense – much more than we do,” she told Yle.
After the concert, cellist Angervo wondered if the event could be repeated on a larger scale.
“I wish the whole chamber orchestra would come here,” he suggested. “That could be amazing.”
The 19-member ensemble, which is conducted by John Storgårds, bills itself as the EU’s northernmost professional chamber orchestra.
