Music as a lifestyle.

 

Instead of blasting your favourite tunes during a busy day, try ambient noise instead. According to a Journal of Consumer Research study, ambient noise at a moderate rather than low volume enhances creativity. A moderate noise volume makes processing more difficult, which in turn promotes abstract processing and leads to higher creativity. When we struggle to process our thoughts, we turn to more creative ways to understand and make sense of the world.

Classical music can improve visual attention

One study has shown that stroke patients who listened to classical music showed better signs of visual attention than those who listened to white noise or silence. In fact, the participants who listened to white noise or silence had the worst scores of the entire group. This study was very small and needs to be performed with more participants, but this preliminary research is promising.

Music helps us exercise

Numerous studies have been done on the correlation between working out and listening to music. Music distracts us from our inner complainer. It helps drown out the thoughts of fatigue that might actually convince us to slow down or stop a workout if we were exercising in silence. In short, music mutes the pain and amplifies the gain. This phenomenon is especially helpful during low- and medium-intensity exercise, as opposed to high-intensity exercise. Unfortunately, it’s pretty hard to distract our brains during high-intensity exercise. But for low-stress exercise, music tempos can even be used to help keep a certain pace while running or walking. Syncing our steps to the beat of the music can help us pace ourselves for an entire jog, walk, or bike.
Music clearly has a positive effect on the brain and body. We hope that you can apply these specific benefits of music to your life as you march to the beat of your own drum!

The purpose of music.

Through the years, music has also served cultures as a medium to tell stories which should be passed down through their generations. Before written language, stories were essential for the preservation of information – and the best way to remember a story?? Sing it! Even now, when we want to remember a phone number (for some reason your cell phone isn’t around to hold it), don’t we often unconsciously sing it?
A funny aside, my son, whom I’d played classical music to while in my belly, at the age of 4 months was very in tune with music. I remember more than once, holding him while listening to a song I’d just sung, and if the song was sad, he would begin to cry!! With uptempos, he was fine, but those sad songs got him every time. It surprised me at first – but with music being a language beyond words, it makes perfect sense to me now.

Taking this audio discussion to an even deeper level, for years I used an audio meditation program, which through music and sound, actually altered the state of one’s brain waves, inducing very deep levels of meditation in a short amount of time. I know it sounds like a crock, I was sceptical too, until I personally experienced the palpable positive benefits of consistently using this audio program. After using this program for some time, I had no doubt that the use of audio/music therapy is going to be a fast expanding career field.