Our anthropocentric view generally causes us (in good faith, of course) to impose what we like on our pets. Since they cannot tell us what they want or don't want (at least not with words), we tend to make decisions for them. This applies to food, daily routines, play, and all aspects of their lives.
Fortunately, as knowledge and understanding of pets advance, proposals designed by and for them are being developed. Such is the case of Music for Cats, the first venture by a major record company into a work not specifically aimed at human beings.
With Universal Music, American cellist David Teie has released five compositions designed for felines. Music for Cats is the result of scientific research conducted by the University of Wisconsin for two years.
Teie believes that each mammal species has intuitive biological responses to sounds that are part of the early stages of its development. Therefore, the musician, who is part of the U.S. National Symphony Orchestra, has included in his compositions sequences that imitate "their own language" and that make sense to them. In fact, the ingredient that makes this piece special, that turns it into music for cats and not for humans, is that it includes the sounds a cat makes when suckling or purring. While humans have their mother's heartbeat recorded in the brain areas responsible for emotions even before birth, cats imprint the sound of sucking when suckling in their memory when their brains are forming.
The result is an album of 40 minutes of (pseudo)purrs and (pseudo)meows (in a format that makes it audible, and even pleasant for humans), which sought funding to be released, through a crowdfunding campaign. The songs have suggestive titles such as "Feline Ballad", "Kitten Song", or "Feline Airs" that incorporate evocative sounds for cats, conveying comfort and affection, with the aim of relaxing the cat. Obviously, like all art, it is not an exact science. So it's best to discover how your own ARISTOCAT reacts. Additionally, introducing music into their life can be a good idea to enrich their home environment.
And although his theory applies to other species, the choice of cats is not trivial. Since music (at least for now) is bought by humans, the decision was made to direct the album to a popular pet. The choice of the cat, instead of the dog, was a simple auditory reason. There are many dog breeds, with very variable sizes and weights that notably change the voice of each specimen, while "cats are more uniform across breeds," says Teie, who, as a curious note, is allergic to cats.
For now, it is difficult to evaluate the reception of the album among cats, but among their owners, it is clear: the release took place on October 14 and has already climbed to the top position in sales on the iTunes Classical Music Chart.
What's next? Teie assures that the next music-loving animals will be dogs and horses. We will be attentive!