The Whole Music Experience

When I first started researching music for healing and consciousness purposes, I worried too much about the frequency or vibration of music.   While there are still some musical styles I still find offensive to my nervous and immune systems, I felt like I was limiting myself when it came to popular music genres, such as 1960s pop.   While research has revealed that the rock n’ roll beat has ill effects on the heart because of the way our bodies entrain to dominant beats and rhythms, on emotional and mental levels, listening to rock or pop music from our past brings a different type of healing. I thought I could live in an ivory tower of Bach and Mozart along with field recordings, but then I started slipping on visits to YouTube and I had to hear music from my early childhood, my teen and young adult years.   When I listened to these songs, memories were triggered and I could work through the hardships from those times in my life, clear garbage out of m...

Lisa Spector and Sanchez Feed Your Mind with Whole Music  Originally published in the Natural Inquirer (Skagit Valley Food Coop) What if your shopping list looked something like: Organic broccoli, organic carrots, organic soy milk, and acoustic music CDs? It might if you think of music as an energetic substance that your body absorbs and digests.   Current research shows it does. According to psychoacoustic experts (researches the effects of sound/music on the nervous system) music entrains our minds and bodies.   Every cell in our bodies responds to musical vibration and while some types of music lifts our moods and immune responses, some music can lead us into a black hole of depression and low immune responses (think heavy metal).    While many of us recall Don Campbell’s 1997 book, The Mozart Effect , not everyone prefers classical music. We can still reap the benefits of music by listening to other genres including world...

In-Tune with Neptune (The Outer Planet Returns Home to Pisces on April 4) Besides researching and writing about music, I practice astrology as a hobby. I tend to favor watching the trends caused by the outer planets, Pluto, Neptune, and Uranus because these planets stay many years in a sign. Uranus stays around 7 years, Pluto and Neptune around 12-14 years slowly transiting a sign. In fact, since the discovery of Neptune during the Victorian Age (September 23, 1846) the planet has only made one round of the zodiac, starting and ending in Aquarius. On April 4, Neptune transited into its home sign, Pisces. I find this significant because I work in a field that is governed by Neptune and I also have this large and beautiful planet smack on my MC/10th house of my natal chart (career). So it’s no accident that I discovered the healing power of music since Neptune basically rules my chart. Incidentally, I think its fate that I write this article because Neptune was discovered whe...

Wikipedia Not all Beethoven compositions are created equal, ditto for Chopin’s repertoire and fill in the blank with a composer’s name. To say that all of Mozart’s music increases IQ levels is an overstatement and a false assumption. I feel sad for anyone who only listens to Mozart to increase their IQ because then they miss out on the holistic experience of Mozart’s music. And I doubt any of these composers with the exception of Mozart (after he joined his local chapter of the Freemasons), composed with any healing or energetic intentions. Most classical composers during their time, composed for commissions from the church or an elite patron. After music publishing arrived, the composers earned money through publication of their compositions, which in order to earn their keep, had to appeal to music audiences, as well as, amateur and professional musicians. So we need to keep this in mind when working with music for healing purposes. Classical music goes a long way in heali...

Dr. Jeffrey Thompson Rainforest & Ocean Waves With Alpha Brainwave Pulses The Relaxation Company/Sounds True Brainwave Suite The Relaxation Company/Sounds True My stress levels have been shooting through the roof lately. I have been suffering from insomnia, too many worrisome thoughts floating around in my head and a pinched nerve in my lower back. So this feels like the perfect time to experiment with relaxation recordings. Besides, high stress levels can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, suppressed immune system, aches, pains, and depression. The relaxation route seems a better way to go. Granted I laughed at relaxation tapes while I was a rocker in my 20s, but now hitting middle age, I want to see what’s available because I believe that psycho-acoustically designed recordings provide a better remedy for relaxation and sleep than sleeping pills and more fun than counting sheep. I still prefer acoustic recordings with sound healing tools, instrumental ...