Music as a Healing Modality

Oct 14, 2024by Nelson Montelauro

Music permeated the ancient world in the most sacred, culturally relevant contexts: Shamans used drums to promote heightened spiritual states of consciousness, mantras are chanted, hymns are sung, and voices and instruments harmonize around the world. Every culture, every religion and nearly every place of worship employs music for a variety of purposes: to conduct religious rites, to meditate, to offer thanks to the divine, and to transcend the physical...

What was the Original Purpose of Music?

A key question is whether music was an outgrowth of human cognition, or part-and-parcel of it from the very beginning. Given the evidence, music seems to exist right at the beginning of human cognitive development, furthering and nurturing cultural practices and ways of thinking. Darwinians thought it was tied to human courtship and evolution; later scholars suggested it was less utilitarian and more about the expression of emotions. In the Old Testament, David used a harp to heal Saul from an evil spirit, and it seems to have been common practice to use harp music for its calming effects. In ancient Greece, music was used initially as a mystical way to communicate with gods, but became more associated with mirroring the harmonic frequencies seen in the universe. This change occured after Pythagoras discovered the overtone and the physical basis of music as consisting of vibrating waves. He believed that music could reestablish mental harmony, and he even composed music to address physical conditions (4).

Later Confirmation of What The Ancients Knew

One of the earliest studies on the physical benefits of music for human biology was done by Helene Grimal and Fabian Maman, who subjected cancer cells to the music of various musical instruments at a low volume. She found that the most powerful anti-cancer instrument was the human voice, which caused the cancer cells to quickly disassemble (11). The reason could have to do with the natural frequency of the human voice, which is very low, around 100-250hz, and the inability of cancer cells to communicate internally. Another study by Mittlestein, et al., 2016 found that ultrasound frequencies did not harm blood cells but were able to destroy all cancer cells after 1 minute (7).

Dr. Manners's studied the frequencies of healthy human tissues in 1950s and concluded that, "every part of the body — the heart, the lungs, the liver, the kidney, the muscles, the bones, the nerves — possesses a harmonic. These harmonics are now tabulated. We know what they are, and they can be played back into the structure and the system."(3).

Dr. Colorio, a researcher of bioenergetic medicine, writes that:

“the auditory environment that engulfs us during the course of our day impacts the balance of our innate resonant frequencies or vibratory response. Our bodies are able to tune in to healthy or unhealthy vibrations in our environment. Exposure to either good or bad frequencies impacts us physiologically as it does all matter. Human tissue in itself is an energy system. Impedance to energy flow within the tissue can be a predecessor to tissue dysfunction, and dysfunction in the tissues changes their vibratory resonant characteristics. Certain precisely-specified frequencies, amplitudes, and waveforms, are associated with healthy, electrically balanced (homeostatic) functioning of the body as a whole and of its various parts. Certain other frequencies, amplitudes, and waveforms either accompany unhealthy tissue or imbalanced disruptions or serve as early warning signals.”

She further explains that:

“...the Einsteinian view of vibrational medicine is that human beings are a multidimensional organism composed of physical/cellular systems in dynamic interplay with complex regulatory energy fields. Cymatic therapies, which belong to the field of vibrational medicine, target these energy fields, directing sound energy into the body to correct and restore the balance of the resonance frequencies within...There are literally hundreds of ‘signature vibrations’ of healthy organs and tissues. Each commutation, or harmonious combination, of frequencies is supportive to the specific tissues it is designed to bring into resonant balance. All of these signature vibrations are the inherent resonant frequencies of the tissue to be targeted in its optimal or healthiest state of wellness.” (2).

It is interesting that the healing effects of music, from ancient societies to today, had one thing in common: they used pre-modern tuning frequencies. These frequencies were tuned according to natural proportions, like the Golden Ratio, and the Shumann Resonance, and were usually around 432Hz. The reason even Tibetan bowls and other instruments have this frequency is that 432Hz frequency produces waves that vibrate in equal proportion to the Schumann resonances (6-10Hz). The Schumann resonance fluctuates around 7.83Hz, or 8Hz, explaining why 432Hz sounds more natural since it aligns more closely with the Schumann resonance. However, some argue that the frequency of A should be even lower to reflect the more accurate 7.83Hz, meaning A would be around 422Hz. However, the Shumann resonance varies depending on location and 8Hz seems to be something of a sweet spot for building frequencies. This was confirmed by Ananda Bosman’s research in Norway, who found that when the pineal glad was exposed to 8Hz it released more hormones associated with sleep, while 6Hz frequencies were associate with negative emotions (9). Staying aligned with the Earth’s natural resonance may promote mental and physical healing.

Recent Scientific Research Showing Positive Benefits from 432Hz

Modern studies have confirmed that music, particularly made through instruments attuned to the natural proportions of the Shumann resonance, can induce a wide range of positive physical effects. For example, music has been found to increase serotonin and decrease stress hormones. Other studies have found that music can reduce blood pressure, and have effects on metabolism, circulation and brain activity.

For example, a 2022 study by Buzzi et al. examined the effects of 432Hz on sedation level for patients in an intensive care unit. They found that patients’ heart rates decreased progressively after listening to 432Hz music (8). In patients with spinal cord injuries, listening to 432Hz music improved sleep, while those that listened to the same music at 440Hz experienced no benefits (5). Another study examined the cardiovascular parameters of cancer patients before and after a 15-minute listen to a 432Hz tone, and a 443Hz tone. They found that, “vascular resistance and stiffness were significantly reduced by 432 Hz, which was not observed at 443 Hz.” (4).In general, listening to classical music tuned to 432Hz leads to lower cortisol levels, as well as lowered blood glucose, lipid levels, and appetite (10). The reason is that the sound waves need to transfer from the bones of the middle ear to the inner ear and basilar membrane. It is in the basilar membrane that the sound waves are converted into electrical signals and action potential in the auditory cortex, where pitch and timbre are processed. When the amygdala receives signals from 432Hz classical music, it sends signals that reduce cortisol, while rock music increases cortisol levels.

A 15-month study by Anthony Holland, associate professor and director of music at Skidmore College in New York, found that the combination of two frequencies was able to destroy cancer cells completely, a low frequency, and a high freuqncy that was the 11th harmonic of the low. Pancreatic cancer cells shattered at freuqncies between 100,000 and 300,000

According to Jahmaal Hays, president of Eastern Vibration, "ultrasound has a 90 percent success rate for destroying prostate cancer without remission." He runs a program called The Touch and Vibration for Cancer Care Program which teaches therapists how to use sound therapy (12).

Key Points:

Sound therapy in general has long been known to aid homeostasis, considering that electromagnetic fields surround the body and all of its organs, cells, and even cellular fluids have their own frequencies (6).

Music Therapy Is Associated with:

Improved respiration
Lowered blood pressure
Improved cardiac output
Reduced heart rate
Relaxed muscle tension

Videos:

References

1. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2004-05-10/wooden-pipe-find-excites-irish-archaeologists/1973640

2. Liu, Hong. “Music Therapy”. https://www.qimaster.com/guide/articles/112807_music.html

3. https://www.vesica.org/cymatherapy-healing-with-sound-waves/

4. Hohneck, A., Rodríguez, Á. M., Weingärtner, S., Merx, K., Sarodnick, F., von Gagern, F., ... & Hofheinz, R. D. (2024). Differential effects of sound interventions tuned to 432 Hz or 443 Hz on cardiovascular parameters in cancer patients: A randomized cross-over trial.

5. Calamassi, D., Lucicesare, A., Pomponi, G. P., & Bambi, S. (2020). Music tuned to 432 Hz versus music tuned to 440 Hz for improving sleep in patients with spinal cord injuries: a double-blind cross-over pilot study. Acta Bio Medica: Atenei Parmensis, 91(Suppl 12).

6. Kerna, N. A., Chawla, S., Carsrud, N. D. V., Holets, H. M., Brown, S. M., Flores, J. V., ... & Ayisire, O. E. (2022). Sound therapy: vibratory frequencies of cells in healthy and disease states. EC Clinical and Medical Case Reports, 5(1), 112-123.

7. Mittelstein., et al. (2016)

8. Buzzi, F., Yahya, N. B., Gambazza, S., Binda, F., Galazzi, A., Ferrari, A., ... & Collaborative Group. (2022). Use of musical intervention in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of a developing country: A pilot pre–post study. Children, 9(4), 455.

9. Crotti, E. (2017). Integral 432 Hz Music-Awareness, music and meditation. Lulu. Com.

10. Aslam, M. S., & Sindhu, M. J. J. (2022). Review Article PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MUSIC IN HUMAN BEINGS. Journal of Akhtar Saeed Medical & Dental College, 4(03), 140-14.

11. Fabien Maman (1997), The Role of Music in the Twenty-first Century, Redondo Beach, CA.

12. https://www.abmp.com/textonlymags/article.php?article=2074

“Dr. Alfred Tomatis, Ear, Nose and Throat surgeon and pioneer in Applied Psychology (2.), has conducted many research studies about hearing. “For each of us, the first sounds we ever knew were the sounds of our mother's heartbeat (approx. 50-60 beats/minute); the soft whooshing sound of our mother's breath in and out, much like the sound of distant surf coming in and going out (approx. 12-15 cycles/minute); the tone of our mother's voice, muted and high pitched resembling the sound of a dolphin. These were the first sounds that connected us to our bodies and the world around us.”

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