Music therapy
Both the body and emotions can be profoundly impacted by music. Listening to faster music can help you focus and feel more awake. You can feel more upbeat and hopeful about life when you listen to upbeat music. You can feel calmed and relieved from the tension of the day by letting your mind and body rest with a slower cadence. Music is a powerful tool for stress relief and relaxation.
These subjective musical impressions are supported by research. Alpha brainwaves, which have frequencies between 8 and 14 hertz or cycles per second, can be produced when the brain synchronizes with music that has a beat of about 60 beats per minute, according to recent research. We experience this alpha brainwave when we are alert and at ease. A person may need to spend at least forty-five minutes in a relaxed position, listening to relaxing music, in order to induce sleep (a delta brainwave of five hertz). Music “looks to be able to modify brain activity to the same amount as drugs,” according to Stanford University researchers. They pointed out that music is accessible to nearly everyone and can be used as a simple stress-reduction technique.
What kind of music is the most effective in lowering stress? It may surprise you to learn that even at modest volume, Native American, Celtic, Indian, and stringed instruments, drums, and flutes can effectively calm the mind. Rain, thunder, and other natural noises can also be calming, especially when combined with other types of music like easy listening, light jazz, or classical (the “largo” movement). How can you pick the greatest relaxation music for you, given that we are rarely told the beats per minute? You have some control over the solution: the music must first appeal to you and then calm you. You could begin by just listening to the music on this website.
How Does It Operate?
An interpersonal process in which the therapist uses music and all of its facets to aid patients to enhance, recover, or maintain health” is how Bruscia (1991) defined music therapy (Maratos, Gold, Wang & Crawford, 2008).
“A systematic process of intervention wherein the therapist supports the client to promote health, using musical experiences and the connections that form through them as dynamic forces of change,” is another alternative definition of music therapy that was proposed by Bruscia in 1998.
Attentional Modulation
The modification of attention is the first factor. Music captures our interest and diverts us from stimuli that can cause unpleasant experiences (e.g., fear, discomfort, concern, etc.). This could also explain why music listening during medical operations can reduce anxiety and pain (Koelsch, 2009).
Emotional Modulation
Emotional modulation is the second way that music therapy works. Research has demonstrated that areas of the brain involved in the initiation, creation, maintenance, termination, and modulation of emotions can be controlled by music
Examining the Psychology
It is quite difficult to examine a psychological theory of music therapy because there are many different theories on how music works as a therapeutic tool (Hillecke, Nickel & Volker Bolay, 2005).
The study of music psychology is still in its infancy (Wigram, Pedersen & Bonde, 2002). While music psychology is a cutting-edge interdisciplinary study that draws from the disciplines of musicology, psychology, acoustics, sociology, anthropology, and neurology, music therapy is a multidisciplinary field (Hillecke et al., 2005; Wigram et al., 2002).
Psychologists examine what occurs in music therapy using tests and diagnostic tools such questionnaires and the paradigm of cognition (Hillecke et al., 2005).
