Research has shown that music has a deep effect on your body and mind. There is a growing field of health care known as Music Therapy, which uses music to help cancer patients, children with ADD, and others. Even hospitals are starting to use music and music therapy to help with pain management, to help ward off depression, to encourage movement, to calm patients, to ease muscle tension and much more.

 

This morning’s Slice of Health show on Chennai Live was a conversation with Augustine Paul, Director of the 118 year old Madras Choir on what his thoughts were on this topic.

 

Augustine said there are 2 types of music that are part of our lives – Background and Foreground. Most of us listen to background music, on our phones, radios and laptops while doing other tasks. This is of some consequence he says, but not much. He referred to it as furniture music. The most important kind is the Foreground music. This is when you specifically take time off everything else and attend a concert or music show.

 

He feels that music always has a purpose and that it creates a sense of life. For example, a hotel lobby without the music may convey to you no activity! He says organized sound is music and that music can mend a faulty “system”. An example was that combining Mozart’s music with the sounds of the sea waves has an immense calming and de-stressing effect.

 

Music is 4 components: Vertical (Harmony), Horizontal (Melody), Cyclic (Rhythm) and Aesthetic. It is the Horizontal and cyclic that catch people’s attention.

 

Augustine is a huge fan of Mozart’s music.  He feels that anybody who is exposed to Mozart’s tunes will go away with the tune in their heads. The simplicity of his melodies connect immediately to the lay person he feels.

 

From his experience working with children and individuals of different ages, Augustine said he has seen so many cases of people who are considered to be abnormal or slow in everyday life being supremely intelligent and capable in the world of music.

 

He has also come across instances where music has physically helped people. Physiotherapists are using musical instruments to help their patients overcome physical ailment.  A person with an elbow injury was given a base drum to play along with some music. He was so intent on getting his beats right that subconsciously he was strengthening his elbow without realising it. Similarly a patient with arthritis was given a keyboard to play music on.

 

Augustine shared a fun trivia related to music. He said music has a positive influence not only on humans but on animals too! Dairy farmers in Germany and Denmark have found that playing classical music to their cows results in better milk production by the animal!

 

A couple of callers shared how much of a difference music has played in their lives, in helping them be calm and happy. One caller also suggested that apart from music, the other art forms such as dance, painting etc. also help in holistic healing.

 

But that is a topic for another discussion. Till then, Share the music and share the happiness and joy that comes with it.

 

Tune in 9-10am next Thursday, 25th October, for another interesting show!

 

Photo courtesy: http://oliviaworks.co.uk