The Whole Music Experience

Raise music consciousness a notch in less than 19 minutes... One of the best days of my music research occurred when I discovered Ted Talks. I found talks on the brain and music, the benefits of music education for children, the elasticity of the brain, as well as, musical performances. I could give a list of music consciousness books, which I know most of you won't read.  Or I thought of including these touching and educational videos about the power of classical music. Granted, Ted Talks supplies us with talks on other music genres.  Some of the speakers such as Benjamin Zander use humor to make a point and others give delightful performances. Speaking of Benjamin Zander, I'm including his talk on The Transformative Power of Classical Music.   Next up,  on the same topic, here's violinist Tatiana Berman with an accompanying dance performance. Finally, for the last video, we end with violinist Deanna Choi giving an emotionally-charged perf...

Not everyone likes to meditate or has time to say affirmations.  For these folks, affirmative songs come to the rescue. Launch your day with these five songs. Many of today's metaphysical teachers such as Esther Hicks (Abraham), Sonia Choquette and Sandra Anne Taylor tell us to start our days on a positive vibe.  These teachers have their various methods involving affirmations, or talking ourselves into a better mood by making general statements.   Sound healers invite us to use sound healing tools such as flutes, Tibetan and crystal bowls or toning with our voice. However, most people I know will say that they don't have time to explore sound healing or practice meditation.  And it's like pulling teeth to get colleagues to say affirmations when they wake up each morning.  Fortunately, many musicians and music composers have written affirmative songs (uplifting melodies with affirmative statements) that anyone can find on YouTube.  Or we could learn t...

While we normally make the connection between virtuoso musicians and classical music, we find virtuosos in a variety of musical genres.  We could explore the lives of virtuosos and delve into the character traits and intelligence of virtuosos, but I have a better idea. Often when I feel depressed or in a deep funk, I head over to YouTube and watch a virtuoso performance. Usually, I watch a soloist performing a concerto with a symphony orchestra, but sometimes, I tune into folkloric or jazz virtuosos in which there are many to choose.  Ever watched a virtuoso Colombian or Venezuelan harpist perform?  As I watch these performances, often times holding my breath, I lose myself in the performance and by the time the video ends, I forgot my worries and fears.  I walk away feeling elated (and a bit envious of the talented performer that wowed an audience). To get you started, I'm including five videos representing five different genres in which we witness a virtuoso ...

Heads up, this coming April promises a lot of stress.  We'll need to pull back, gather our senses and find ways to relax.  Why not create a power music kit in the same way as a medicine chest or cabinet? Basically a power music kit provides us with a go-to music library during a crisis, a stressful experience or just for the sake of pleasure. I recommend including a variety of genres and music of higher frequency that raise vibration of minds, bodies and hearts.  The higher our frequency, the more centered we become and when we feel centered, world events don't devastate us. Below I'm including inspiration in the form of genre lists and some artists I have found helpful in my life.  I will list the music by moods or actions needed. Invigorate, uplift, help move tension out of the body through movement such as dance: Latin Music from the Caribbean, Mexico, South America, Central America, and the American Southwest such as Tex-Mex and Native American Chicken ...

A lesson I've learned over the years researching music revolves around intention verses consciousness.  Of course, a musician or music listener could align consciousness with intention, but usually I witness one or the other.  For instance, promoters of sporting events tend to blast loud rock music to invigorate athletes and rouse the attendees.  However, loud rock music also can cause hearing loss, weaken the immune system (when the body goes into fight or flight) and interrupt the body's natural rhythms.  So in this case, we have intention minus consciousness. On the other hand, we could have consciousness in the form of music produced for specific purposes such as a sleep aid, a digestion aid or to boost energy, but the person listening to the music doesn't pay attention to the original intention of the music.  So if someone listens to a recording for relaxation while driving a car, he or she might find themselves losing alertness and in a worst case scen...

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...

Women Stand Up; Women Speak Up Women musicians from the West African country, Mali grabbed my attention in 2001 and I’m still enthralled by their personal power and musical talent.   In 2002, I received Tama’s recording Espace in the mail featuring the vocals of Mamani Keita sung over warm acoustic guitar, the Malian banjo, ngoni and percussion and I haven’t forgotten Keita’s vocals over the years. With her solo album, Kanou (World Village), Mamani Keita sings in a traditional voice about contemporary social issues, but mostly she sends an invitation out to women of the world to stand up against violence towards women and children as well as, keeping our world leaders on the same page as the people who voted for them.   Keita uses her powerful voice and musical gifts to bring transformation to the world acting as a messenger for all of us. Please note that this interview has been through three translations and lyrics weren’t included with the CD. ...

  photo by Patricia Herlevi (Conclusion of the book Whole Music Soul Food for the Mind Body Spirit) Super Music verses Junk Music (Excerpt) Like many other Americans, I spent my childhood eating junk food and listening to pop music.   Both the junk food and commercial music provided quick fixes and temporary comfort followed by agitation and hyperactivity later.   While food allergies and sensitivities increase in our society, I developed sensitivities to heavily programmed music without a strong melody or natural rhythms (in sync with the natural heartbeat).   I escaped into the worlds of jazz, classical, folkloric, and indigenous music.   However, some pop music, such as the Beatles with strong melodies and interwoven harmonies provides its own type of healing. In my twenties, I gravitated towards alternative rock.   It’s as if I needed to evolve spiritually, physically, and intellectually before I could appreciate music genr...