The fact that music has an impact on living organisms has been known for a long time. In the 3rd century BC, in the Parthian kingdom, tunes were selected for the treatment of heart pain and nervous disorders. Some tribes of the American Indians believed that with the help of sound it is possible to combine the forces of earth and sky. The Ojibwa Indians sat near the patient and sang songs, accompanying themselves with pumpkin rattles. And the healing music of the Winnebago Indians helped heal wounds. Also, rattles and drums were used to increase the healing properties of plants. Pythagoras also composed music that was based on certain rhythms and melodies. With its help, he not only healed people, but also restored spiritual harmony. Once he even managed to calm down with the help of music an enraged man who, in a fit of jealousy, wanted to burn the house down. Although before that neither relatives nor neighbors could control him.
Over the past decade, there has been a renewed interest in music therapy. Healing music in the West is now used in three ways. It is used to relieve pain, for occupational therapy and for the collective treatment of patients in some hospitals, most often mental patients. Scientists have found that such therapy is the most economical and safest way to get rid of many diseases. In addition, music therapy has no contraindications.
A pleasant melody has a beneficial effect on the nervous system, on the circulatory system, on the digestive and respiratory organs. Healing music helps to increase the number of lymphocytes in the blood. And it helps the body fight disease. In any case, at a time when a harmonious melody sounds, the human body improves metabolism, calms the nervous system, stimulates blood circulation and respiration. Those who listen to such music may forget what insomnia is, a bad mood, a feeling of insecurity, and a bad memory. Good music even helps develop creativity.
Scientists explain this effect of music on the human body by the fact that a person is inherently a vibrating system. And music is also a synchronized and ordered vibration. The melody brings its order to the human system and tunes it in its own way. What is a disease? This is a process during which a diseased organ ceases to harmonize with the rest of the body. And with the help of music, this desynchronization can either be increased or removed altogether. There is only a question in the correct selection of a melody.
Among most people, there is an opinion that heavy music, for example, rock, tunes the body to self-destruction, and classical promotes harmonization. But not everything is so simple. The same music in different people can cause a variety of emotions. And not all classical works are healing music. Just like not all rock melodies contribute to the self-destruction of the body. For example, some of Chopin’s creations act on a person as a psychological poison. In them, the composer expressed his weakness and melancholy. Many works by Strauss or the “Wenisberg scene” by Wagner himself act in a similar way on people.
Mozart is another matter. His music is considered a universal tool that has beneficial effects both on living organisms and on inanimate objects. Scientists have discovered that cows that listen to Mozart increase milk yields. And the Japanese believe that from his music, bread becomes more magnificent, and sake more fragrant. The works of this composer are recommended to listen to for headaches and colds, with mental stress and depression. In short, always and everywhere.
And folklore. Take the same lullaby. Such healing music for sleep has a bright calming effect due to its soft melody, soothing rhythm and uniform sound. The lullaby helps to strengthen the emotional and spiritual connection with the child, and at the same time helps mothers to get rid of insomnia. In many slow parts of sonatas, concerts, symphonies and violin quartets of composers of the late 18th and only 19th centuries, there are basic signs of such lullabies.
Chinese medical music also makes a great contribution to music therapy. The medicine of this country pays great attention to music and sound. For example, a doctor in this field, Wang Xu-Dong, managed to create magical melodies that enhance the person’s immune system and increase his ability to heal and self-heal. To create this music, Chinese instruments such as erhu, guseng, xiao, di, sheng, pipa, zong-hu, as well as cello, violins and voice accompaniment were used. With the help of such melodies, the soul, body and mind of a person are built into a single system.