It’s Mozart for Lower Blood Pressure!

I keep talking about the positive effects of music on the physiology of our bodies – now some more scientific proof!

Mamma Mia! listening to Mozart lowers blood pressure…but ABBA has no impact

Mozart’s Symphony No 40 in g minor lowered blood pressure 

• Sarah Knapton, science editor

21 JUNE 2016 • 3:50PM

Relaxing to a soothing Mozart symphony can lower the blood pressure as much as cutting salt from the diet or exercising, a new study has shown.

But for people concerned about their heart, it might be wise to stay clear of ABBA, which has no impact at all.

Scientists in Germany played Mozart’s Symphony No 40 in g minor, dances by Johann Strauss and songs by ABBA to 60 volunteers, monitoring their blood pressure before and after the experiment.

The music of ABBA did not show any or only very small effects on blood pressure and heart rate.Hans-Joachim Trappe

They found that Mozart lowered systolic blood pressure (the pressure in blood vessels when the heart beats) by 4.7 mm Hg, Strauss 3.7  mm Hg but the Swedish pop group made no significant difference.

Diastolic blood pressure (when the heart rests between beats) also fell by 2.1 mm Hg for Mozart and 2.9 mm Hg for Strauss.

Previous studies have found that aerobic exercise such as cycling, running or brisk walking had a similar impact on lowering blood pressure. Reducing salt by 6 grams per day brings systolic blood pressure down by between 7 and 4 mm Hg.

The lyrics in ABBA songs may have prevented the calming effect of music, say researchers  CREDIT: CREDIT ANDERS HANSE

“It has been known for centuries that music has an effect on human beings. In antiquity, music was used to improve performance in athletes during the Olympic Games,” said Lead author Hans-Joachim Trappe, of Ruhr University, Germany.

“In our study, listening to classical music resulted in lowered blood pressure and heart rate. These drops in blood pressure were clearly expressed for the music of Mozart and Strauss.

“The music of ABBA did not show any or only very small effects on blood pressure and heart rate. This may be due to emotional factors, but on the other hand the use of spoken words may have a negative role.”

The researchers concluded that to be of benefit, music must be; in a pleasant key, of skilful composition, have a consistent volume and rhythm, devoid of rousing sequences, have no lyrics, and have achieved a certain degree of fame and popularity.

The research was published in the journal Deutsches Arzteblatt International.

Brain damaged violinist makes music for first time in 27 years with mind-reading technology

I came across this story that I wanted to share with my readers about the power of music. I was very touched by this woman’s ability to finally be able to express herself with music after so many years of being trapped inside her mind and body from such a devastating brain injury. I hope you are blessed by this story and gain a new appreciation of how much we need the expression of music in our lives. 

Shalom – Steve

Rosemary Johnson had made music for the first time since suffering a devastating car crash in her 20s.

Violinist Rosemary Johnson at approximately aged 17 Photo: Paul Grover/The Telegraph

By Sarah Knapton, Science Editor – The Telegraph

12:01AM GMT 07 Feb 2016

Violinist Rosemary Johnson has spent the last 27 years coming to terms with the reality she would never make music again, following a devastating car crash.

A member of the Welsh National Opera Orchestra she was destined to become a world class musician before the road accident in 1988, which left her in a coma for seven months.

Violinist Rosemary Johnson at approximately aged 19  Photo: Paul Grover/The Telegraph

Miss Johnson suffered a devastating head injury ,robbing her of speech and movement and meaning she could only pick out a few chords on the piano with the help of her mother Mary.

“The first time we tried with Rosemary we were in tears. We could feel the joy coming from her at being able to make music”

Professor Eduardo Miranda, Plymouth University

But now, thanks to cutting edge technology, she is creating music again, using just the power of her mind.

In an extraordinary 10-year project led by the Plymouth University and the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in London, her brain has been wired up to a computer using Brain Computer Music Interfacing software.

  Photo: Plymouth University

By focussing on different coloured lights on a computer screen she can select notes and phrases to be played and alter a composition as it is performed by live musicians. The intensity of her mental focus can even change the volume and speed of the piece.

It is the first time Miss Johnson, 50, has been able to create music in decades and has been an emotional experience for the her, and the scientists involved in the programme.

  Photo: Plymouth University

“It was really very moving,” said Professor Eduardo Miranda, Composer and Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Computer Music Research at Plymouth University.

“The first time we tried with Rosemary we were in tears. We could feel the joy coming from her at being able to make music. It was perfect because she can read music very well and make a very informed choice.

Violinist Rosemary Johnson at approximately aged 25 after the accident  Photo: Paul Grover/The Telegraph

“The great achievement of this project is that it is possible to perform music without being able to actually move. She is essentially controlling another musician to play it for her.

“It’s not yet possible to read thoughts but we can train people to use brain signals to control things.”

  Photo: Plymouth University

Three other disabled patients who live at the hospital have also been trained to use the technology, and have been working alongside four able-bodied musicians from the Bergersen String quartet who play the music in real time as it is selected.

They are called The Paramusical Ensemble, and they have already recorded a piece of music entitled Activating Memory which will be heard for the first time at the Peninsula Arts Contemporary Music Festival in Plymouth later this month.

Miss Johnson’s mother Mary, 80, of Hounslow, West London said the project had given her daughter new hope.

Violinist Rosemary Johnson at approximately aged 17  Photo: Paul Grover/The Telegraph

“Music is really her only motivation,” she said. “I take her to the grand piano in the hospital and she can only really play a few chords, but that was the only time she shows any interest. She doesn’t really enjoy anything else.

“But this has been so good for her. I can tell she has really enjoyed it. When she performed I went to the hospital and that is the first time I have heard her make music, other than the piano chords for a long, long time.”

The technology works like a ‘musical game’ where the players select pieces of melody at certain times of the performance to augment the overall work, which was composed by Prof Miranda.

Each patient wears an EEG cap furnished with electrodes which can read electrical information from their brain. They are paired with a member of the string quartet who views the musical phrases on a screen as they are selected in real-time.

  Photo: Plymouth University

Julian O’Kelly, Research Fellow at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability added: “This is a great means of transcending disability to offer individuals a unique experience of creating music with each other, and interacting with skilled musicians to create original compositions.

“In the case of Rosemary, the project illustrated the great potential this innovation could have for participants who may have once been gifted musicians, but now lack the physical abilities to engage in music making.

“You could clearly see in her broad smile during the performance how much she enjoyed the experience.”

The patient quartet are made of Miss Johnson, Clive Wells, Richard Bennett and Steve Thomas.

  Photo: Plymouth University

Speaking through an automated voice machine, Mr Thomas said: “I like music and I am very interested in the Brain Computer Music Interface. It’s more interactive with people actually getting my instructions.

“It was great to hear the musician play the phrase I selected. I tried to select music that was harmonious with the others. It’s very cool.”

The team are hoping that the technology could be used one day to improve mood and help them to express their feelings.

“If our patients were able to compose music to reflect their state of mind, that would be an amazing way for them to be able to express themselves and music therapists could then use that to work with the patients,” added Dr Sophie Duport, of Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability

  Photo: Plymouth University

Joel Eaton, PhD Research Student at Plymouth University’s said: “One of the key things about this system is that not only does it give a user the interaction and control of an instrument, it allows them to interact with each other.’

‘If this idea was developed it could have ramifications in all areas of someone’s life. Potentially I can see the ability for someone to express musically how they are feeling again without their ability to move their fingers, to communicate with words.’

Music and Post Operative Surgery Recovery

I was listening to a news report that referenced this study published in Lancet magazine and thought I would share it with you. Also an mp3 file to listen to.

Music as an aid for postoperative recovery in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Jenny Hole, MBBS

,

Martin Hirsch, MBBS

,

Elizabeth Ball, PhD

,

Catherine Meads, PhD

Published Online: 12 August 2015

Music is a non-invasive, safe, and inexpensive intervention that can be delivered easily and successfully. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess whether music improves recovery after surgical procedures.

Methods

We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of adult patients undergoing surgical procedures, excluding those involving the central nervous system or head and neck, published in any language. We included RCTs in which any form of music initiated before, during, or after surgery was compared with standard care or other non-drug interventions. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and Cochrane Central. We did meta-analysis with RevMan (version 5.2), with standardised mean differences (SMD) and random-effects models, and used Stata (version 12) for meta-regression. This study is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42013005220.

Findings

We identified 4261 titles and abstracts, and included 73 RCTs in the systematic review, with size varying between 20 and 458 participants. Choice of music, timing, and duration varied. Comparators included routine care, headphones with no music, white noise, and undisturbed bed rest. Music reduced postoperative pain (SMD −0·77 [95% CI −0·99 to −0·56]), anxiety (−0·68 [–0·95 to −0·41]), and analgesia use (−0·37 [–0·54 to −0·20]), and increased patient satisfaction (1·09 [0·51 to 1·68]), but length of stay did not differ (SMD −0·11 [–0·35 to 0·12]). Subgroup analyses showed that choice of music and timing of delivery made little difference to outcomes. Meta-regression identified no causes of heterogeneity in eight variables assessed. Music was effective even when patients were under general anaesthetic.

Interpretation

Music could be offered as a way to help patients reduce pain and anxiety during the postoperative period. Timing and delivery can be adapted to individual clinical settings and medical teams.

Listen to this short interview with the researcher

The 444 Hz Calibration vs. the 432 Hz Calibration!

I wanted to take a moment to address a subject that frequently comes to me in the form of one question or another. Many people are asking if it might not be better to use the 432 Hz calibration to tune with instead of the orchestral standard of 440 Hz. They go on to site many articles from the internet regarding the changing of the standardization in years past, and some include theories about why it was changed. I am not going to dwell on these theories nor list any sources for this understanding; there are many available online by using a Google search.

I do not question that the standardization was changed and I do not say that the 432 Hz crowd are all wrong, but I do want to give you a reason why I choose to go with the 444 Hz calibration for the A note. Actually a friend of mine told me one time when I asked him about the difference, that he believed that some people responded better to the 432 Hz calibration and some better to the 444 Hz. In fact he had his piano tuned to the 432 Hz calibration. So I think there is a value in exploring various approaches.

I have chosen to use the 444 Hz calibration because of the understanding I have come to out of the Hebrew text of the book of Numbers – Chapter 7 and Psalms 119. I have that teaching available on YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqSf1L2dxUQ

Because I find these frequencies presented in the ancient scriptures, I have great confidence in them and their ability to affect our lives. The most important frequency that comes out of these 6 that are found in the scriptures is the 528 Hz or C note (if you use the 444 Hz calibration). Much study and experimentation have been done with this frequency – from Emoto’s work on healing water and frozen water crystal structures, to DNA repair by genetic researchers using this frequency; and others as well. The 528 Hz frequency has been given the name, “Miracle Frequency”, “Healing Frequency”, “Creative Frequency” and others reflecting its amazing qualities.

If you use the 432 Hz as your calibration, you do not achieve any of these scriptural frequencies in any of the harmonizing notes of the scale you would then produce. The notes produced are actually flat from the standardized tuning. In using the 444 Hz calibration the notes are slightly sharp. Interestingly, most professional singers naturally sing slightly sharp. I believe that this is another evidence that the 444 Hz calibration is more accurate because this seems to reflect that their DNA is actually telling them to sing sharp or into the 444 Hz area. Before I understood these frequencies, I would tune my harp sharp because it just sounded better to me. Now I know why.

I just want to say that I am not saying that I have the final indisputable answer to this issue. I am just as much on a journey of discovery as you all are. I may even change my position at some point down the road. I am just giving you the best information I have at this time. I want to encourage you all to continue to study this out. I believe that there is much more to learn here.

I want to thank you all for your interest and support and invite you to stay tuned (Pun Intended!) as we continue this journey. I also invite you to send me anything you may discover in the process. Until the next one…..Enjoy!

Sharing “Wholetones”

I had a friend call me the other day and introduce a website and concept to me that I would like to share with you. This is another approach to the Solfeggio Frequencies that I believe has merit in offering a therapeutic medium for receiving positive effects from the frequencies. I really like what Michael and his team have done by sounding the different frequencies and then playing harmonizing instrumentation into the frequency – filling it out into wonderful worshipful music that brings the healing and peaceful atmosphere. It is another example of what I believe to be various forms of understanding these frequencies and how to employ them what God is releasing to His children for our healing and restoration. Michael tells anecdotal stories of healings he has observed, even with his own mother – just as I have observed healings as well with the harp music.

I hope you appreciate their work and its results.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31iD2VPLMxQ

Guest Post on Relaxation

Eat Sleep Relax – Best Stress Relief Ever

This morning many people would have woken up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. Automated coffee machines across the western world turn on at 5:45am to be ready for their bleary eyed masters / slaves at 6:30am.

Yesterday, neither my wife nor I got the chance to go to the supermarket. So, last night, we logged in to the supermarket website and ordered online. With a bit of luck, our groceries will arrive between 2pm and 6pm this afternoon.

I need a new phone case because mine is coming apart at the stitching – mainly because it is always ringing, buzzing, beeping and demanding my attention. So today I will again jump online and find a suitable replacement case. It should arrive in my letterbox in a few days.

It will be delivered by my local postman who no longer delivers letters from friends or relatives. His sole delivery run now appears to be small, brown cardboard boxes with “eBay” or “Amazon” printed on them…. or the occasional bill.

Large corporations are cutting costs, cutting staff, making their workers do more with less, spouting rhetoric about “working smarter, not harder”, when what they really mean is the exact opposite.

Long hours at work are now a fact of life.

There are simple online solutions to this time problem – such as online shopping.

There are simple physical solutions to this time problem – such as automated coffee machines.

What these simple solutions do not account for is the tiredness and stress caused by our increasingly busy modern lives.

Here are three stress busters to provide some relief to the modern plague of working harder and not smarter.

Note that I am a musician and a computer nerd. I am not qualified in any medical field whatsoever. However, it is safe to suggest the following three ideas will make you and your body feel approximately a gazillion per cent better.

These three ideas are simple, easy to implement and if applied consistently will make you feel healthier, happier, stronger, fitter, remove some of your stress and put you more in control of your life.

• You are what you eat.

New Year’s resolutions about weight loss come and go. While there are well documented studies about “healthy eating”, if was easy we’d all be doing it, wouldn’t we ?

Let’s keep this simple.

First and probably most important is to eat more fresh food and less packaged food. Next time you are at the grocery store, grab a bunch of bananas, a few apples, some lettuce, some tomatoes, some carrots and some beans.

Put the fizzy drinks down !!!

Buy some eggs, some rice, some chicken and some fish if the budget allows it. Live on the edge and grab some bacon.

Drink plenty of water.

However, there is a little more to it than just having healthy ingredients. Eating slowly and deliberately is also known to improve your overall health.

Sitting in front of the computer or the TV and inhaling your dinner is NOT good for you.

Excess weight causes stress – physical stress on your body, emotional stress on your mind and financial stress on your wallet or purse.

Obviously it is easy to say “eat properly” in a generalised way such as this blog post. But, making the effort and eating more of the foods you know are good for you and less of the foods you know are bad for you will help lower your stress levels.

• Get more Sleep.

Sleep often. Sleep regularly. Sleep as if you mean it.

It’s not brain science and it certainly isn’t rocket surgery.

The human body needs to sleep approx. 7 hours minimum per night.

Yes, some people need more or less sleep than others, but everyone needs to sleep in order to allow their bodies to rejuvenate and regenerate after the physical and metal stresses of the day.

At bed time, turn the phone, TV and computer off. If possible, close the curtains and try to lie down somewhere comfortable and quiet….. such as a bed.

The routine associated with going to bed – put on your PJs, clean teeth, brush hair, perhaps put on some quiet and calming music, get into bed and snuggle under the sheets – also helps with letting your body know it is time to sleep.

Lack of sleep is also a factor in over-eating. Your body is telling you to “rest and refuel”, but a tired brain gets confused and says, “mmmmm…..cookies……”.

A tired brain and body makes bad decisions and is easily irritated, which in turn raises stress levels.

Sometimes, the more tired you are, the harder it is to get to sleep, which in turn adds to the irritation and general grumpiness, which increases feelings or stress, which makes it still harder to go to sleep and thus a vicious cycle begins. Not good !

So, make it a point to try to go to bed consistently and regularly each day. Schedule it into your calendar if you have to. 10:30pm until 6:30am in bed should not be a difficult time period to permanently add into your life, even in this busy world we now live in.

• Relax. Chill out. Just stop.

This again is more easily said than done.

Quick ! Relax !! You’ve got 3 minutes !!! Relax – NOW !!!!! Oh, the irony.

Relaxation is actually quite simple and easy to do – even if you only have a few minutes.

First, eating well and sleeping properly make relaxing easier.

Second, relaxation can take many forms. It can be a long vacation or holiday, sitting by the pool on a tropical island drinking mocktails with bits of pineapple and strawberries poking out of the glass. It can be having a massage or reading a book, playing a leisurely round of golf, or listening to some calming music while sitting in your favourite comfy chair. It can be dropping the kids off at the Grandparents house and going to see a movie with your husband or wife or a friend.

Relaxation can also be as simple as closing your eyes and breathing slowly and deeply, counting backwards from 50 to zero. Hey, if you’re stretched for time, count backwards from 20 to zero.

This simple relaxation technique of slow, deliberate breathing can be done anywhere, at any time – in the bus or train during the morning/evening commute, at lunch time at your desk, standing in line, in a traffic jam, in the shower or bath, or while cooking the dinner.

Meditation can also be a great way to take a few minutes to calm down.

Slowing your breathing also has the benefit of slowing your heart. A slower heart beat means less stress.

Interestingly, the human body “tunes in” (pardon the pun) to the sounds around it. If you listen to fast and heavy music, your heart can begin racing, the adrenaline begins pumping and your dancing shoes make you want to get up and boogie.

And the opposite is also true.

Listening to some calming music – such as the beautifully relaxing harp of Steve Rees who was recently featured in an interview, or the many fine musicians at CalmingMusicWeekly.com who specialise in calming their listeners (including Steve !) – can help to slow the heart, calm the mind and soothe both the body and the soul.

Listening to calming music can help you to sleep.

Calming music and the relaxation it can provide can help you to feel better about and within yourself…. which in turn helps you to make clear decisions about eating properly and sleeping regularly and effectively.

And thus a wonderful self-fulfilling cycle begins.

Stress in our modern world is all around us. It is difficult to live with and difficult to get away from.

However, with some simple healthy eating, regular sleep for at least 7 hours a night (and preferably more), combined with some calming music, deliberate relaxation and just a hint of some exercise – a brief walk every day will do the job – you will find that you may begin to be much happier and healthier.

Happy and healthy. Less stress. How good does that sound ?

About the Author:

Matthew Harding is a husband, father, musician and ice cream addict. He loves computers and helping others with their websites. He also enjoys playing and recording relaxing and calming music – not only for his benefit but to help soothe and relax others as well. Visit his website at http://www.CalmingMusicWeekly.com/blog for more relaxation and stress relieving suggestions. Matthew is also a big fan of the calming harp of Steve Rees…. Thanks S

Music Frequencies Decoded

On the Shabbat of January 10, 2015 I had the opportunity to share the teaching I have developed on the Music Frequencies found in the scriptures of Numbers 7:12-83 and how they apply to the Hebrew alphabet characters from Psalm 119. I have already posted an abbreviated version of this teaching on YouTube, but this teaching is more detailed and many are sharing it on Facebook, so I thought I would make it available to those who are following this website. It is a fascinating idea to think that we can bring music out of the Hebrew text of the Psalms and other passages and discover the relationships between the words and the sounds. This is how much of the music that I have available as samples on this site has come about. I am hoping some of you will join me in exploring the possibilities of this music with different instruments and approaches of interpretations of the chord progressions found within the Hebrew text.

Here is the link to the latest teaching:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPPqycxTz6w&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Please share with those you think might be interested in this understanding. Blessings.

Steve

Relationship Between Music and Relaxation

 

What Makes Relaxing Music?

 

By Martin Mayer

from: http://healing.about.com/od/sound/a/musicrelax.htm

.

Why does music affect our emotions? In our stressful lifestyle, how can we use sounds and music to calm and relax?

Music is the key to a thousand emotions. We associate music with the places we have been, the times we have experienced and the people in our lives. Music is all around us. There is no denying the effectiveness of music, so why not use it to affect our own emotions and enhance our personal environment? Relaxing music, relaxation music, meditation music… call it what you will. There is no question that it can help us to shape our environment effectively and can be changed to suit or influence our mood.

In today’s society, wherever there is radio, television, cinema or the internet, we will be exposed to music. Music is all around us and is a commodity so important that is used by virtually every company on the planet to sell us their products and services. Very often we are completely oblivious to the sounds drifting out of those in-store speakers or the impact and drama of an action-movie soundtrack placed in a car advert. Music is a complex language that can convey any emotion or conjure a response from any audience. At the same time music is simple and universally understandable.

We are used to others using music to influence our emotions and therefore decisions. However, we rarely use music’s benefits to help ourselves. Relaxing music or relaxation music (also known as new age music) can be used to relieve stress, unwind after a hard day at work, promote good sleep or as a focus of concentration during yoga or meditation. As a composer, the idea of music for relaxation has fascinated me. For a long time, I have researched the benefits of music for health and wellbeing. Music is just a part of relaxation, but can be the key to calm and relax mind and body.

Positive healing effects of music have been suggested since ancient times. In the beliefs of Ancient Greece, Apollo was God of medicine and music. It was believed that music had the power to penetrate the soul. According to Plato, Pythagoras practiced a system of sound and music used to cure disease and encourage spiritual health. The Egyptians also believed in the link between medicine and music. The relationship between sound and healing was held sacred.

I am not a healer and I make no claims of the medicinal power of music. To me, music is a powerful tool which can shape emotion and influence moods in ourselves and others around us. It is a powerful positive force that you can harness to aid relaxation and provide a release from stress. Relaxation techniques often rely on music as a spark. Which technique you use depends on your lifestyle and the time you have to yourself.

A good habit can be built; find a quiet room, put work worries to one side and allow yourself time to unwind – dim the lights, light some candles or incense or whatever you find calming. Close your eyes and focus on the sound of your breath. Take in the same amount of air but breathe slightly longer breaths, less often. Relaxing music is a great focus for an exercise like this or any relaxation technique. Listen to relaxation music at a volume level that is high enough to mask any background noise but not so high as to be overbearing. In a busy workplace or home, headphones are useful.

The music should not be too distracting and should be carefully composed to be easy to listen to. I recommend that you use music that is slow and preferably without a heavy beat. However, it should be interesting and different enough to capture the imagination and become a suitable focus for relief. Nature sounds enhance the experience as they help you to imagine a place of peace, calm, tranquility and serenity. It is best to use music written specifically for relaxation, although you could use any music that you find particularly relaxing. This technique is most useful if it can be practiced for a significant amount of time – more than half an hour. However, it can be effective if used for just a few minutes at break times.

Having said all this, no two people are the same. Relaxation and the way we achieve it is different for every one of us. Whatever music you choose should enable you to escape from the stress of everyday life. It should help you to put your worries aside and recharge; physically and emotionally. Whether this is relaxing, new age music, folk, pop or rock is up to you. The simple act of making time to absorb the music is most important. The music also helps to build a barrier between you and the distractions around you. The music becomes a shield and backdrop for your relaxation.

 

About this Contributor: Martin Mayer is a media composer and owner of Sounds That Soothe, producing music to calm and relax. His new CD, Silver Streams is available now – instrumental pieces developed to relieve stress and aid the body in relaxation.

Surprising Effects of Music

 

I wanted to include this article from eMedExpert (online e-zine) because it has a lot of great references at the end of the article. If you are researching the effects of music, these references will be a great tool in getting you exposed to a lot of the literature that is out there supporting the use of music for so many areas of our lives – in health and well being. Much of this information I have included in previous postings, but the review is good and once again, these references are great! Enjoy.

How Music Affects Us and Promotes Health

 

Music is one of the few activities that involves using the whole brain. It is intrinsic to all cultures and can have surprising benefits not only for learning language, improving memory and focusing attention, but also for physical coordination and development.

Of course, music can be distracting if it’s too loud or too jarring, or if it competes for our attention with what we’re trying to do. But for the most part, exposure to many kinds of music has beneficial effects:

1) Music heals

Effective therapy for pain

Overall, music does have positive effects on pain management. Music can help reduce both the sensation and distress of both chronic pain and postoperative pain.

Listening to music can reduce chronic pain from a range of painful conditions, including osteoarthritis, disc problems and rheumatoid arthritis, by up to 21% and depression by up to 25%, according to a paper in the latest UK-based Journal of Advanced Nursing29.

Music therapy is increasingly used in hospitals to reduce the need for medication during childbirth, to decrease postoperative pain and complement the use of anesthesia during surgery30.

There are several theories about how music positively affects perceived pain:

1. Music serves as a distractor

2. Music may give the patient a sense of control

3. Music causes the body to release endorphins to counteract pain

4. Slow music relaxes person by slowing their breathing and heartbeat

Reducing blood pressure

By playing recordings of relaxing music every morning and evening, people with high blood pressure can train themselves to lower their blood pressure – and keep it low31. According to research reported at the American Society of Hypertension meeting in New Orleans, listening to just 30 minutes of classical, Celtic or raga music every day may significantly reduce high blood pressure.

Medicine for the heart

Music is good for your heart. Research shows that it is musical tempo, rather than style. Italian and British researchers32 recruited young men and women, half of whom were trained musicians. The participants slipped on head phones and listened to six styles of music, including rap and classical pieces, with random two-minute pauses. As the participants kicked back and listened, the researchers monitored their breathing, heart rates and blood pressure. The participants had faster heart and breathing rates when they listened to lively music. When the musical slowed, so did their heart and breathing rates. Some results were surprising. During the musical pauses, heart and breathing rates normalized or reached more optimal levels. Whether or not a person liked the style of music did not matter. The tempo, or pace, of the music had the greatest effect on relaxation.

Speeds Post-Stroke Recovery

A daily portion` of one’s favorite pop melodies, classical music or jazz can speed recovery from debilitating strokes, according to the latest research. When stroke patients in Finland listened to music for a couple of hours each day, verbal memory and attention span improved significantly compared to patients who received no musical stimulation, or who listened only to stories read out loud, the study reports(33).

Chronic headaches & migraine remedy

Music can help migraine34 and chronic headache35 sufferers reduce the intensity, frequency, and duration of the headaches.

Music boosts immunity

Music can boost the immune function. Scientists explain that a particular type of music can create a positive and profound emotional experience, which leads to secretion of immune-boosting hormones22. This helps contribute to a reduction in the factors responsible for illness. Listening to music or singing can also decrease levels of stress-related hormone cortisol. Higher levels of cortisol can lead to a decreased immune response23-24.

2) Effects of music on the brain

Music enhances intelligence, learning and IQ

The idea that music makes you smarter received considerable attention from scientists and the media. Listening to music or playing an instrument can actually make you learn better. And research confirms this.

Music has the power to enhance some kinds of higher brain function:

• Reading and literacy skills11-13
• Spatial-temporal reasoning14-15
• Mathematical abilities16-17 – Even children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder benefit in mathematics tests from listening to music beforehand.
• Emotional intelligence

 

The Mozart effect

Earlier it has been thought that listening to classical music, particularly Mozart, enhances performance on cognitive tests. However, recent findings18 show that listening to any music that is personally enjoyable has positive effects on cognition.

Music improves memory performance

The power of music to affect memory is quite intriguing. Mozart’s music and baroque music, with a 60 beats per minute beat pattern, activates the left and right brain. The simultaneous left and right brain action maximizes learning and retention of information. The information being studied activates the left brain while the music activates the right brain. Also, activities which engage both sides of the brain at the same time, such as playing an instrument or singing, cause the brain to be more capable of processing information.

Listening to music facilitates the recall of information19. Researchers have shown that certain types of music are a great “keys” for recalling memories. Information learned while listening to a particular song can often be recalled simply by “playing” the songs mentally.

Musical training has even better effect than just listening to classical music. There is clear evidence20, that children who take music lessons develop a better memory compared with children who have no musical training.

Note: For learning or memory performance, it’s important that music doesn’t have a vocal component; otherwise you’re more likely to remember the words of the background song than what you’re supposed to be recalling.

Music improves concentration and attention

Easy listening music or relaxing classics improves the duration and intensity of concentration in all age groups and ability levels. It’s not clear what type of music is better, or what kind of musical structure is necessary to help, but many studies have shown significant effects21.

3) Music improves physical performance

Music improves athletic performance

Choosing music that motivates you will make it easier to start moving, walking, dancing, or any other type of exercise that you enjoy. Music can make exercise feel more like recreation and less like work. Furthermore, music enhances athletic performance6-8! Anyone who has ever gone on a long run with their iPod or taken a particularly energetic spinning class knows that music can make the time pass more quickly.

The four central hypotheses explaining music’s facilitation of exercise performance include:

• Reduction in the feeling of fatigue
• Increase in levels of psychological arousal
• Physiological relaxation response
• Improvement in motor coordination

 

Music improves body movement and coordination

Music reduces muscle tension and improves body movement and coordination25-26. Music may play an important role in developing, maintaining and restoring physical functioning in the rehabilitation of persons with movement disorders.

4) Music helps to work more productively

Fatigue fighter

Listening to upbeat music can be a great way to find some extra energy. Music can effectively eliminate exercise-induced fatigue9 and fatigue symptoms caused by monotonous work10.

Keep in mind that listening to too much pop and hard rock music can make you more jittery than energized. Vary what you listen to and find out what type of music is most beneficial for you. You could try classical music one day, pop the next day and jazz the third.

Music improves productivity

Many people like to listen to music while they work and I am certainly one of them. How about you? Did you know you can perform better at your work with music? Whilst there may be many reasons for wishing to listen to music in the workplace, it really improves your productivity27!

According to a report in the journal Neuroscience of Behavior and Physiology28, a person’s ability to recognize visual images, including letters and numbers, is faster when either rock or classical music is playing in the background.

5) Music calms, relaxes and helps to sleep

Relaxing music induces sleep

Relaxing classical music is safe, cheap and easy way to beat insomnia1. Many people who suffer from insomnia find that Bach music helps them. Researchers have shown that just 45 minutes of relaxing music before bedtime can make for a restful night2.

Relaxing music reduces sympathetic nervous system activity, decreases anxiety, blood pressure, heart and respiratory rate and may have positive effects on sleep via muscle relaxation and distraction from thoughts.

Music reduces stress and aids relaxation

Listening to slow, quiet classical music, is proven to reduce stress3. Countless studies have shown that music’s relaxing effects can be seen on anyone, including newborns.

One of the great benefits of music as a stress reliever is that it can be used while you do your usual deeds so that it really doesn’t take time.

How does music reduces stress?

Physical relaxation. Music can promote relaxation of tense muscles, enabling you to easily release some of the tension you carry from a stressful day.

Aids in stress relief activities. Music can help you get “into the zone” when practicing yoga, self hypnosis or guided imagery, can help you feel energized when exercising and recover after exercising, help dissolve the stress when you’re soaking in the tub.

Reduces negative emotions. Music, especially upbeat tunes, can take your mind off what stresses you, and help you feel more optimistic and positive. This helps release stress and can even help you keep from getting as stressed over life’s little frustrations in the future. Researchers discovered4 that music can decrease the amount of the cortisol, a stress-related hormone produced by the body in response to stress.

6) Music improves mood and decreases depression

Prescription for the blues              

Music’s ability to “heal the soul” is the stuff of legend in every culture. Many people find that music lifts their spirits. Modern research tends to confirm music’s psychotherapeutic benefits5. Bright, cheerful music (e.g. Mozart, Vivaldi, bluegrass, Klezmer, Salsa, reggae) is the most obvious prescription for the blues.

 

References

1. Harmat L, Taka’cs J, Bo’dizs R. Music improves sleep quality in students. J Adv Nurs. 2008 May;62(3):327-35. PubMed

2. Lai HL, Good M. Music improves sleep quality in older adults. J Adv Nurs. 2005 Feb;49(3):234-44.

3. Labbe’ E, Schmidt N, Babin J, Pharr M. Coping with stress: the effectiveness of different types of music. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 2007 Dec;32(3-4):163-8. PubMed

4. Khalfa S, Bella SD, Roy M, Peretz I, Lupien SJ. Effects of relaxing music on salivary cortisol level after psychological stress. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2003 Nov;999:374-6. PubMed

5. Maratos AS, Gold C, Wang X, Crawford MJ. Music therapy for depression. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008 Jan 23;(1):CD004517. Review. PubMed

6. Simpson SD, Karageorghis CI. The effects of synchronous music on 400-m sprint performance. J Sports Sci. 2006 Oct;24(10):1095-102. PubMed

7. Edworthy J, Waring H. The effects of music tempo and loudness level on treadmill exercise. Ergonomics. 2006 Dec 15;49(15):1597-610. PubMed

 

8. Copeland BL, Franks BD. Effects of types and intensities of background music on treadmill endurance. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 1991 Mar;31(1):100-3. PubMed

9. Jing L, Xudong W. Evaluation on the effects of relaxing music on the recovery from aerobic exercise-induced fatigue. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2008 Mar;48(1):102-6. PubMed

10. Ladenberger-Leo E. Effect of music on the general feeling of persons performing monotonous work. Med Pr. 1986;37(6):347-52. PubMed

11. Besson M, Schon D, Moreno S, Santos A, Magne C. Influence of musical expertise and musical training on pitch processing in music and language. Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2007;25(3-4):399-410. PubMed

 

12. Register D. The effects of an early intervention music curriculum on prereading/writing. J Music Ther. 2001 Fall;38(3):239-48. PubMed

13. Overy K. Dyslexia and music. From timing deficits to musical intervention. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2003 Nov;999:497-505. PubMed

14. Spatial-Temporal Task Performance Jausovec N, Jausovec K, Gerlic I. The influence of Mozart’s music on brain activity in the process of learning. Jausovec N, Jausovec K, Gerlic I. Clin Neurophysiol. 2006 Dec;117(12):2703-14. PubMed

 

15. Sarnthein J, vonStein A, Rappelsberger P, Petsche H, Rauscher FH, Shaw GL. Persistent patterns of brain activity: an EEG coherence study of the positive effect of music on spatial-temporal reasoning. Neurol Res. 1997 Apr;19(2):107-16. PubMed

16. Schmithorst VJ, Holland SK. The effect of musical training on the neural correlates of math processing: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study in humans. Neurosci Lett. 2004 Jan 16;354(3):193-6. PubMed

 

17. Rauscher FH, Shaw GL, Levine LJ, Wright EL, Dennis WR, Newcomb RL. Music training causes long-term enhancement of preschool children’s spatial-temporal reasoning. Neurol Res. 1997 Feb;19(1):2-8. PubMed

18. Schellenberg EG, Hallam S. Music listening and cognitive abilities in 10- and 11-year-olds: the blur effect. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2005 Dec;1060:202-9. PubMed

19. Mammarella N, Fairfield B, Cornoldi C. Does music enhance cognitive performance in healthy older adults? The Vivaldi effect. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2007 Oct;19(5):394-9. PubMed

20. Ho YC, Cheung MC, Chan AS. Music training improves verbal but not visual memory: cross-sectional and longitudinal explorations in children. Neuropsychology. 2003 Jul;17(3):439-50. PubMed

21. Patston LL, Hogg SL, Tippett LJ. Attention in musicians is more bilateral than in non-musicians. Laterality. 2007 May;12(3):262-72. PubMed

22. Kuhn D. The effects of active and passive participation in musical activity on the immune system as measured by salivary immunoglobulin A (SIgA). J Music Ther. 2002 Spring;39(1):30-9. PubMed

23. le Roux FH, Bouic PJ, Bester MM. The effect of Bach’s magnificat on emotions, immune, and endocrine parameters during physiotherapy treatment of patients with infectious lung conditions. J Music Ther. 2007 Summer;44(2):156-68. PubMed

 

24. Kreutz G, Bongard S, Rohrmann S, Hodapp V, Grebe D. Effects of choir singing or listening on secretory immunoglobulin A, cortisol, and emotional state. J Behav Med. 2004 Dec;27(6):623-35. PubMed

25. Bernatzky G, Bernatzky P, Hesse HP, Staffen W, Ladurner G. Stimulating music increases motor coordination in patients afflicted with Morbus Parkinson. Neurosci Lett. 2004 May 6;361(1-3):4-8. PubMed

26. Rosenkranz K, Williamon A, Rothwell JC. Motorcortical excitability and synaptic plasticity is enhanced in professional musicians. J Neurosci. 2007 May 9;27(19):5200-6. PubMed

27. Fox JG, Embrey ED. Music – an aid to productivity. Appl Ergon. 1972 Dec;3(4):202-5. PubMed

28. Pavlygina RA, Frolov MV, Davydov VI, Milovanova GB, Sulimov AV. Recognition of visual images in a rich sensory environment: musical accompaniment. Neurosci Behav Physiol. 1999 Mar-Apr;29(2):197-204. PubMed

29. Siedliecki SL, Good M. Effect of music on power, pain, depression and disability. J Adv Nurs. 2006 Jun;54(5):553-62.

30. Nilsson U, Unosson M, Rawal N. Stress reduction and analgesia in patients exposed to calming music postoperatively: a randomized controlled trial. Eur J Anaesthesiol. 2005 Feb;22(2):96-102. PubMed

 

31. Teng XF, Wong MY, Zhang YT. The effect of music on hypertensive patients. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2007;2007:4649-51 PubMed

32. Bernardi L, Porta C, Sleight P. Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory changes induced by different types of music in musicians and non-musicians: the importance of silence. Heart. 2006 Apr;92(4):445-52. PubMed

33. Sarkamo T, Tervaniemi M, Laitinen S, Forsblom A, Soinila S, Mikkonen M, Autti T, Silvennoinen HM, Erkkila J, Laine M, Peretz I, Hietanen M. Free Full Text Music listening enhances cognitive recovery and mood after middle cerebral artery stroke. Brain. 2008 Mar;131(Pt 3):866-76. PubMe

34. Oelkers-Ax R, Leins A, Parzer P, Hillecke T, Bolay HV, Fischer J, Bender S, Hermanns U, Resch F. Butterbur root extract and music therapy in the prevention of childhood migraine: an explorative study. Eur J Pain. 2008 Apr;12(3):301-13. PubMed

35. Risch M, Scherg H, Verres R. [Music therapy for chronic headaches. Evaluation of music therapeutic groups for patients suffering from chronic headaches. Schmerz. 2001 Apr;15(2):116-25. German. PubMed

Copyright © 2007-2014 eMedExpert.com. All rights reserved.

All information is for educational purposes only.

Music Therapy in Action

Tiny preemies get a boost from live music therapy

 

Note: One of my readers, Abigail, sent this article to me and it very much reflects the experiences I have had while playing the harp at the bedside. Very good information. Thanks for your interest. If anyone else of my readers has an article to share, send it in  – Thanks and Blessings – Steve

By LINDSEY TANNER   –   The Associated Press

CHICAGO —  May 16, 2013

As the guitarist strums and softly sings a lullaby in Spanish, tiny Augustin Morales stops squirming in his hospital crib and closes his eyes.

This is therapy in a newborn intensive care unit, and research suggests that music may help those born way too soon adapt to life outside the womb.

Some tiny preemies are too small and fragile to be held and comforted by human touch, and many are often fussy and show other signs of stress. Other common complications include immature lungs, eye disease, problems with sucking, and sleeping and alertness difficulties.

Recent studies and anecdotal reports suggest the vibrations and soothing rhythms of music, especially performed live in the hospital, might benefit preemies and other sick babies.

Many insurers won’t pay for music therapy because of doubts that it results in any lasting medical improvement.  Some doctors say the music works best at relieving babies’ stress and helping parents bond with infants too sick to go home.

But amid beeping monitors, IV poles and plastic breathing tubes in infants’ rooms at Chicago’s Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital, music therapist Elizabeth Klinger provides a soothing contrast that even the tiniest babies seem to notice

“What music therapy can uniquely provide is that passive listening experience that just encourages relaxation for the patient, encourages participation by the family,” Klinger said after a recent session in Augustin’s hospital room.

The baby’s parents, Lucy Morales and Alejandro Moran, stood at the crib and whispered lovingly to their son as Klinger played traditional lullabies, singing in Spanish and English.

“The music relaxes him, it makes him feel more calm” and helps him sleep better too, Lucy Morales said. “Sometimes it makes us cry.”

Some families request rock music or other high-tempo songs, but Klinger always slows the beat to make it easier on tender ears.

“A lot of times families become afraid of interacting with their children because they are so sick and so frail, and music provides them something that they can still do,” Klinger said, who works full time as a music therapist but her services are provided for free.

Music therapists say live performances in hospitals are better than recorded music because patients can feel the music vibrations and also benefit from seeing the musicians.

More than two dozen U.S. hospitals offer music therapy in their newborn intensive care units and its popularity is growing, said Joanne Loewy, a music therapist who directs a music and medicine program at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York.

Preemies’ music therapy was even featured on a recent episode of the hit TV show “American Idol,” when show finalist Kree Harrison watched a therapist working with a tiny baby at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

“Music is such a huge part of our lives and to do something like this, make it a sort of healing process, is a cool thing,” Harrison said on the April 25 episode.

Dr. Natalia Henner, a newborn specialist at Lurie hospital, said studies in nursing journals show music therapy for preemies “does help with promoting growth. And there’s some good literature … saying that the time to discharge is a little bit shorter in babies who’ve been exposed to more music therapy.”

She said it “definitely facilitates bonding” between parents of preemies and other babies too sick to go home.

Loewy led a study published last month in the journal Pediatrics, involving 11 U.S. hospitals. Therapists in the study played special small drums to mimic womb sounds and timed the rhythm to match the infants’ heartbeats. The music appeared to slow the infants’ heartbeats, calm their breathing, and improve sucking and sleeping, Loewy said.

Soozie Cotter-Schaufele, a music therapist at Advocate Children’s Hospital-Park Ridge near Chicago, says soothing rhythmic sounds of music can mimic womb sounds and provide a comforting environment for preemies. She sings and plays a small harp or guitar, and says the sounds help calm tiny babies while they’re undergoing painful medical procedures.

Cotter-Schaufele said she recently heard from a woman whose daughter was born prematurely at her hospital six years ago. She had played the 1960s folk song “Today” for the infant.

The mother reported her daughter “‘still loves that song,” She said ‘She didn’t learn that song from me, she learned it from you,'” Cotter-Schaufele said.