> It’s not common to be able to hear music in your head

I did not know this, do you have any sources for somewhere to read about it? Not that I don't believe you, I'm just curious about just how unlikely it is to be able to do that.

In music we call the above ability "audiation", and people who can't audiate are often not good at improvisation. It's more intuitive for people who can audiate, and more systematic for people who can't (ie instead of imagining new music, they are generating it from rules).

I can recall and recite full pieces that I've only heard one or two times. I really struggle with remembering lyrics, but I will remember the full suite of instruments and what they played. I can also synthesize/imagine new songs in my head with those same instruments and voices, with totally new melodies and chords, I can do that for voices to. I can make anyone say anything in my head.

I figured everyone could do some variant of that. Though remembering every note is probably a bit extra-curricular I wouldn't have expected it to be that unique.

It's also possible that I don't remember as perfectly as I think I do, but because I can synthesize so well and have a fairly large musical exposure, I fill in the background instruments closely enough that it's the same vibe.

I don’t have any hard data to point you towards but quite a few people self report that they cannot visualize images at all. Most people do but like all things related to the mind there is a spectrum where in the extreme you can find people who can fly by a city in a helicopter once who can reproduce the cityscape, remember the correct silhouettes of hundreds of buildings, with pencils or ink with extreme accuracy.

It’s not a stretch to suppose a similar spectrum exists with audiation (didn’t know this word before BTW!) in the general public with most people can more or less hear some sound in their mind but having multiple channels of music playing in time.. probably not most. I suppose people who get songs stuck in their heads are more able than most in that regard for sure.

the concept of audiation is interesting, I will explore further

thank you for sharing your experience. I too find it hard to memorise lyrics, but can sometimes have a full orchestra playing in time and in tune

I wonder if this audiation is a redirection for anxiety or depression, i.e. my brain's attempt at avoiding insanity

“my brain's attempt at avoiding insanity”

Don’t overthink it. Some people have a stronger ability than others to synthesize sensory data. It’s more related to lucid dreaming, not insanity.

thank you for your response