Why some spicy rhythms can heat up your curry

What people listen to while eating influences how hot they think their food is, research shows

DINERS in curry houses may pay little attention to the music played in the background, however new research shows it could be having a remarkable effect on their taste buds. For the first time research has shown that traditional music, often used in Indian restaurants to set the mood, may also be making food taste hotter.

Scientists at the University of Oxford have discovered that certain types of music – those with fast beats, distorted notes and high-pitched sounds – can enhance the sensation of heat from chilli peppers. In a series of tests researchers were able to produce specific soundtracks that can boost the spiciness of food by up to 10 per cent. They describe the effect as “sonic season- ing”. A shrill violin concerto or fast samba tracks were among the most effective types of music, while distorted notes also seemed to increase the sensation of heat. Prof Charles Spence, an experimental food psychologist who led the study, said traditional Indian music – which often features shrill, distorted notes on a sitar, a fast beat played on small drums, and high pitched singing – may also enhance spiciness.

He said: “Some of the qualities we identify for spicy music in our study are also reminiscent of Indian music. We are looking at a five to 10 per cent change normally.”

The researchers, whose work is published in the scientific journal Food Quality and Preference, first tried to identify elements in music that might be associated with spiciness in food.

A group of 180 volunteers were asked to eat a battered butternut squash dusted with ancho chilli served with a spicy sauce while listening to short clips of soundtracks, white noise or silence. Those listening to soundtracks with faster tempos, a higher pitch and distorted sounds rated the dish as spicier and as having more intense flavours than those listening to silence or white noise.

Janice Wang, a psychologist who was the study’s principal author and who has trained at Le Cordon Bleu, said it appears certain aspects of the music enhanced the sensation of heat.

She said: “We hypothesise this is because the spicy soundtrack primes people’s expectation of spiciness in the food. We are not sure whether it’s exposure to this type of music that makes people associate spiciness with high pitch and distortion.

“Another idea is that high pitch, high distortion and fast tempo are associated with high energy, and that reflects the sensation of eating spicy foods.”

Some modern music such as the Arctic Monkeys could also be ideal for bringing out the spiciness in food.

“Any music with those characteristics would be more likely to be associated with spiciness,” Dr Wang said.