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How Music Affects Us?
How does music affect our well-being? It seems there is no definitive answer to this
question. However, experts in the field of music and sound therapy feel there are two
major ways in which music and sound can affect our lives.
The first is the principle of entrainment. This refers to the phenomena of being in
sync. In other words, our bodies automatically adjust to the pace, rhythm, or pulse of
the music. How many times have you walked into a room with other things on your
mind and heard music playing? You stop to listen for a few minutes and all of a
sudden, your foot is tapping to the music or you are swaying your head or body with
the beat. Or, a certain piece of music evokes memories of a time when you heard the
music before, and the feelings of that time come immediately back into your
awareness. In scientific terms, our psyches and bodies become entrained to the sonic
environment created by the music.
Music in this sense can be a powerful tool in both positive and negative ways to the
listener. Music entrainment is more than just a tool to be used for behavior
modification, however. Music has the power to integrate the whole person allowing
profound healing on many levels.
Music is one of the few experiences that can touch a person on all levels of
consciousness. It is a powerful sensory stimulus that can work simultaneously on the
body, mind, and spirit. Vibrational entrainment, as a result of listening to music, can
bring harmony to the body by actually entraining the body with the music. It can have
a transformative effect on an individual by moving through the body systems and
bringing about harmony. Through the use of music, positive effects have been seen in
the nervous system, affecting the endocrine system, which in turn enhances the
immune system.
A second principle that music utilizes in affecting patients is the principle of diversion.
This method of utilizing music and sound is helpful in taking the attention away from
an unpleasant or unwanted situation. An example of diversionary music is the playing
of bright, happy, energizing music when the listener feels down in the dumps. Music,
in this sense, can be used in a therapeutic situation to reduce anxiety and pain,
temporarily transporting the listener to another reality during the healing process.
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