Music Therapy and Its Effects

by anwar1808 (student)

University Degree Subjects allied to Medicine

Music Therapy and its effects.[1]

A powerful force that is commonly taken for granted, music can be consciously used to serve many purposes. Such purposes include motivation or reward, a means of reducing boredom and even manage time, by setting a desired pace for the listener (Ortiz, 1999, p. Introduction xv). Considering the breadth of such a subject, it is essential to contain the contents of this essay into a focused discussion. Namely, music, its use in therapy and the effects it generates. This essay will also discuss the different arguments for the support of various therapeutic effects of music, along with its detractors.

In recent decades, an enormous amount of research has been conducted on specific ways in which sound, rhythm and music, in general, can improve human lives. Arguably, one of the most interesting of them all is the “Mozart Effect”.[2] Supporters of this ‘phenomenon’ claim that listening to Mozart’s music can affect you positively in a number of ways. Mainly, it improves one’s spatial-temporal reasoning skills and that early childhood exposure is beneficial for mental development. Let us take a closer look.

Spatial-temporal reasoning skills refer to the ability to visualize spatial patterns and mentally manipulate them over a time-ordered sequence of spatial transformations. This ability, often referred to as "thinking in pictures", is important for generating and conceptualizing solutions to multi-step problems that arise in areas such as art, science, mathematics and everyday life (Spatial-temporal reasoning, 2006, para. 1). In his foreword for Don Campbell’s The Mozart Effect for Children, child development expert, Joseph C. Pearce, mentioned that when the Nobel laureate – and neuroscientist – David Hubel was asked whether he had any interest other than his specialty, his reply was, “Actually, I seem to have spent an inordinate amount of my life at the piano.”. It was also stated that in the 1940s, atomic scientists at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, gathered at spare moments in the evening to play string quartets,[3] and that Einstein – arguably the greatest scientist of our time – had a ‘love affair’ with the violin (Campbell, 2002, Introduction xii). Assuming that all scientists are smart, intelligent human beings, there is little doubt that Pearce’s statements of associating scientists with musical instruments was a deliberate attempt of portraying the idea that music begets intelligence. But how far is this true? Could it be that mere coincidence plays a part in linking some of the greatest scientists to music?

This is a preview of the whole essay

According to Campbell, studies show that schools that include music in their curricula produce the highest achievers in the country. A study in Hong Kong found that adults who had received music training before age twelve have a better memory for spoken words than those who did not. Furthermore, Dr. Gordon Shaw of the University of California has shown that taking piano lessons and solving math puzzles significantly improves specific math skills of elementary school children (Campbell, 2000, p. 185). Mozart’s music has similar effects. In a study of nineteen children aged seven to seventeen with attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADH),[4] researchers played recordings of such Mozart compositions as Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major (K. 467) and The Marriage of Figaro during thrice-weekly neurofeedback sessions for some of the children. Nothing was played for the others. The researchers reported that those who listened to Mozart displayed improved focus, mood control and social skills. Seventy percent of the subjects who improved maintained that improvement for at least six months afterward (Campbell, 2002, p. 183 – 184).

These studies indicate that listening to and playing music generally generates various positive results. However, none of these studies prove that a hundred percent of the subjects tested attained these same results. In fact, there were many attempts to replicate some of these results, but most were unsuccessful (Willingham, 2006). On top of this, Rauscher himself later wrote that,[5] “spatial-temporal task performance varies widely between individuals”. This goes to show that the “Mozart Effect”, as well as the different positive effects of music therapy, has various degrees of effects and that it may not necessarily affect everyone.

Another topic that will be discussed is Temiar music.[6] In this indigenous community, a major technique of healing ailments involves singing and trance-dancing ceremonies/rituals, which are usually led by a medium. The medium would sing tunes and texts given to him during dreams by spiritguides,[7] to the patient, as female chorus members accompany him. Also, sometimes instruments such as the noseflute, bamboo-tube zither and mouthharps are used in the process. Depending on the severity of the patient’s illness, these activities are conducted as small rituals or huge ceremonies. Basically, the more severe the illness is, the bigger the ceremony.

Unfortunately, efficacy of this method of therapy and curing illnesses is not a well documented subject. It is, however, a fact that Temiar tradition of healing with music has gone on for generations and generations and that it is still in practice today. From these observations, one may deduce that it is a tired-and-tested method and therefore, to a certain extent, it works. But since it is not a thoroughly investigated topic, such a deduction is open to debate.

From the various arguments stated above, I come to the conclusion that music therapy is a powerful force that can be consciously used. From University students in Hong Kong, toddlers in America and Aboriginals in Malaysia, overwhelming evidences suggest that the effect of music therapy transcends ethnic boundaries and that, the earlier you are exposed to it, the better positioned you are to exploit it.

Bibliography/References

Campbell, Don (2002). The Mozart Effect for Children: Awakening Your Child’s Mind, Health and Creativity with Music. Hodder and Stoughton.

Clarke, Ken J. and Finlay, Bland

Ortiz, John M. (1999). Nurturing Your Child with Music. Newleaf.

Roseman, Marina (1993). Healing Sounds from the Malaysian Rainforest: Temiar Music and Medicine. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication.

Robbins, Arthur (2000). The Artist as Therapist. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Warren, Bernie (1993). Using Creative Arts in Therapy: A Practical Introduction. New Fetter Lane, London: Routledge.

Willingham, Daniel T. (Fall 2006). "Brain-Based" Learning: More Fiction than Fact. American Educator.

(2006, 10, 2006). Mozart Effect. Retrieved October 31, 2006, from

[1] For the purpose of this essay, the word “therapy” will not only mean “any treatment designed to improve a health problem or to cure an illness” (Oxford dictionary, 1999, p. 1238), but also, any other positive effects that derives from it.

[2]

It is unclear who first coined the phrase, but it undoubtedly came into being as a result of attention aroused by countless scientific studies conducted on the effect of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s music on its listeners. The phrase has since been trademarked by Don Campbell, Inc.

[3]

A string quartet usually consists of 2 violinists, a viola player and a cellist.

[4] Some of the symptoms of these disorders include emotional oversensitivity, anxiety, an inability to concentrate, difficulty relating to peers and a general incoherence of thought (Campbell, 2000, p. 183).

[5]

Frances H. Rauscher was one of the pioneering scientists that conducted tests on the effects of Mozart’s music.

[6]

The Temiars are Aboriginals who dwell in peninsular Malaysia (Roseman, 1993, p. 2)

[7]

According to Temiar belief, “spiritguides” refers to entities of object (animate or inanimate), such as a particular jungle flower or a mountain, that visit mediums in their dreams, in a humanised form, to offer their services to the mediums, to be their teacher. These spiritguides will then begin to sing and the dreamer would repeat it line by line until, upon awakening, the song is committed to the dreamer’s memory. (Roseman, 1993, p. 53)