A study has found that the energy levels of music affect what we remember. Two researchers in London looked at the kinds of memories people had after listening to different types of music. A music psychologist and a neuroscientist researched how the tempo and mood of songs affected what people remembered about their past. The researchers found that high-energy music made people remember funny and happy events. Slower and acoustic music brought back memories of calmness and sadness. It even made people think about romantic experiences.

The researchers asked 233 people about their memories. The people listened to popular songs from their childhood. The neuroscientist said the feelings people had about music affected their memories. She said: "It's not just the musical features that influence memory, but also how much a person likes a song." The music psychologist said acoustic songs brought back memories that were "vivid and unique" and contained "complex emotions like romance". The research will be put into a database of musical memories on a website.