The sounds of cure

Music speaks to us in a powerful way, so much so that many musicians and music theoreticians believe that it is a true language that developed almost at the same time as speech. Foreign language words need translating; wails, cries, screams, joy, chirping, sighs, olés, boos are understood everywhere in the world, with no need for translation. The difference is that words trigger an emotional response only after their emotional meaning has been understood; conversely, because they don’t need translation, musical notes prompt direct emotional responses.
Music can quiet down the heart of violent people, even against their will. Music can calm down even a savage through its “enchanting” power. Its therapeutic power is such that in some intensive care units for patients with heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, mental disorders or depression, classical music is used as an adjuvant in the recovery process.

“My heart, which is so full to overflowing, has often been solaced and refreshed by music when sick and weary”, said Martin Luther (1483-1546).

Therapy through music can be explained: it brings us pleasure. It plays the role of a “stream of reward” in our body: music invades our body, soul, causes goose bumps, uplifts our spirit and sometimes leads us into ecstasy. Good music is that which engages the brain in the right dosage and activates the reward system.
It has been proven that we listen with our whole body. It is very difficult to remain still when we listen to music: our feet start moving back and forth, our hands to move, sometimes we even pretend to hold an invisible baton and start directing, or we spin around in ballet steps. Our bodies dance; so do trees, shrubs and flowers to the whims of the wind; so does the Universe, to a Divine symphony.