There are four basic, essential principles to using music in healing and sound therapy. These four principles are: brainwave entrainment, intention, sympathetic resonance and pure tone. While these terms may sound complicated, they are very simplistic in nature. Each is necessary in the music healing process, although they function independently of each other.
Not much is known yet about brainwave entrainment, which is alternatively known as brainwave synchronization. Because very few studies have been performed regarding the phenomenon, it is usually associated with parapsychology and pseudoscience, and is not given much credit within the scientific community. However, it has been proved that this phenomenon does exist and is a plausible alternative to modern medicine.
The easy explanation of brainwave synchronization is that the brain constantly sends out many different brainwave "pulses" of varied states simultaneously, instead of one at a time. One singular brainwave state with become dominant, contributing to your current state of mind. With brainwave synchronization utilizing binaural beats, one can actually influence the brain as well as your current mental state.
H.W. Dove, a German Scientist, discovered binaural beats in 1839 when he presented two different frequencies of sound to each ear. The brain then detects the difference between the two frequencies of sound and produces a third, new signal, a binaural beat which is equal to the difference between the two frequencies. For example, if you played a sound frequency of 85Hz in your left ear, and 90Hz in your right ear, the brain would create it's very own frequency signal of 5Hz to make up the difference of the two presented frequencies. Using this method, one can actually induce the brainwave state that they desire.
As both the left and right hemispheres of the brain start to resonate to a binaural beat in synchronization, you now have brainwave entrainment, which research has indicated contributes to extreme creativity, pronounced clarity and inspiration. EEG patterns recorded from different test groups comprised of highly successful individuals also displayed an extraordinarily high level of brainwave entrainment.
Intention is the next essential part of music healing therapy, which is most easily explained as the motivation behind the sound being played. If you think of this in terms of a lullaby sung to a child, which is intended to soothe and relax, versus a heavy metal song intended to vent anger and frustration, you can see how very influential intention is. Having the intention to heal, soothe, and repair can carry from a singer's voice or musician's instrument to the person or persons receiving the sound.
Sympathetic Resonance can be best described as a harmonic phenomenon where one sound will cause a "sympathetic" response or reaction. This can be achieved in many ways, for example when a loud sound will cause windowpanes to rattle, or when a C tuning fork is is struck, a different C tuning fork nearby will also begin to vibrate. When applied to music healing therapy, there must be a resonance between the musician and the listener.
Pure tone is also very important in this process and is a single-frequency tone with no harmonic content (no overtone). You may be most familiar with pure tone if you have ever had a hearing test, and they played pure tones into headphones. Obviously when applied to music healing, harmonic content will most likely be added, but pure tone allows our bodies to heal. When our bodies receive a pure tone our muscles will relax and tension will be released.
These are the four basic building blocks of healing with music. Many other aspects are very important as well but these essential parts of not only sound, but sound and music in healing therapy, must be present in order for healing and relaxation to take place.
Choosing the correct, or most appropriate music which is conductive for alternative healing therapies - and for overall wellness - is of the utmost importance. Music has been used for healing, or as an aid to healing for thousands of years. The Bible tells us that David played his harp to cure King Saul's depression. Egyptian records dating from over 2,600 years old point to music being used as cures for infertility and arthritis.
In fact, one of the most ancient techniques, now finding a revival in modern culture, is in ancient Greece where the Pythagoreans believed that music was a gift from the Gods, and reflected mathematical perfection. It was widely believed that diseases and afflictions, both mental and physical, were simply disorders that could be improved or even cured by the proper application of music.
When you do choose to use music for healing, it is thus extremely important that you select the most appropriate music for the particular problems you are treating. This isn't nearly as simple as it may appear, however. Allow me to cite you an example of the complexities in the correct selection of music.
Let us say that you are depressed in your life and about to select music to make you feel better. Your first instinct is going to be to listen to music that is also depressing, or has a depressive effect. However we know from experience that this only serves to make the listener more depressed or melancholy. On the other hand, if you were to play happy or upbeat music, you may also find yourself more depressed as your brain compares your current situation with the music you are hearing. And few of us are in the mood to listen to enthusiastic music of any kind while we are feeling down.
Therefore you must find a way to move around this apparent "Catch 22". One simply way of doing that is a progressive movement of mood from your current state to your desired state. So if you were in fact dealing with depression, you would then first listen to a recording that is the epitome of depression and sadness to you. Once listening to that, move up a step and listen next to another recording, this time of slightly lighter mood and tone. Keep improving the mood and base emotions of the music you are listening to while your mood falls in sync with the music.
Music that you use for healing should be geared towards this use. New Age Music, Classical Music, Meditation and Relaxation Music, music with nature sounds in the background, and other such compositions. You can also find music especially geared towards music healing, using modern versions of the Pythagorean music healing techniques, such as the music of Classical New Age artist Daniel Kobialka. The music should soothe and calm you, rejuvenate and refresh you, not cause excessive excitement or distractions.
The music you choose does not have to be boring to you either! The music you listen to should evoke emotion, and cause you to feel the music completely throughout your body. Respond to the music in whatever way is most natural for you. You may move your body with the music, use visualization techniques, sync your breathing with the music or any other method of expression.
While the critics of music healing state that there is no conclusive evidence that it works, science has proven the power of sounds again and again. For example, not only can sound affect emotions, it can also have a physical impact on our surroundings. Lithotripsy is the medical term for the removal of gallstones using sound where a special machine generates sound waves to shatter stones. You most likely have also seen in media the effect of an opera singer shattering a glass with the power of her voice alone. If music can be used to destroy, it can also be used to heal.
When using music in healing therapies, the word "harmony" is the most important goal to keep in mind. In both of the examples above of the impact of sound, we are speaking about "resonance", which is - simply put - the occurrence of one object or force "getting in tune with" another object. All matter is made up of molecules, which all have their own vibrational frequency, or rate of movement. If you remember your basic science, you'll note that molecules that vibrate at the highest speeds make up gases, molecules that vibrate moderately are liquids, and the slowest of course are solid matter. However all molecules are constantly attracting each other and in movement.
The idea of using music to heal is therefore the idea that we can project a harmonious sound at a person who is in "dis-harmony" (having an affliction or problem to be solved), and move them back into harmony, and thus heal the individual. It is a very realistic and feasible effect that continues to help and assist millions of people across the globe. Using music in healing should be considered a viable and useful alternative healing method.
Stephanie Davies has sinced written about articles on various topics from Web Development, Advertising Guide and Web Development. Stephanie Davies is a 28 year old work at home mom to a 9 year old boy in Mid-Missouri. Her hosting company, Hosting WAHMs at