Creative Practice Week 6 – Nature's Music

Part of my job is to expand Baptist Health's Caring Arts Program. As part of that expansion, we will be working on building a corps of musicians and other performers from within Jacksonville's rich cultural community. Music is comforting to us in so many ways when it is melodious and light-hearted. It also can transport us to another time or place by the memories the individual piece uncovers. It is very important to understand how music affects us. 

Music as a therapeutic intervention is a development largely of the mid-20th century; however, it has existed in various forms in most cultures for many centuries. Dissanayake says that “Although the term “music” does not mean the same thing in all cultures—indeed most societies have no concept or word for “music” in a Western sense—the activities of singing and otherwise making and participating in music appear to be universal in humans” (Brown and Voglsten 2006, pp31-56). In her book, What is Art For?, she points out that music is a ritual that has existed for nearly as long as humankind. She also says that music is frequently thought to have transcendent and transformative powers. It is in mourning and healing rituals, especially, where musical form seems to be widely used to manage and shape human feeling. These rituals are important because even as they heal individuals or assure the safe passage of the deceased person’s spirit to its ancestral home, the ceremonies provide an institutionalized outlet for individual pain, fear, grief and anger. At the same time, they reassert group loyalties as members fulfill their ritual obligations (Knopoff, 1993: 149; Averill and Nunley, 1993) (Brown and Voglsten 2006, pp31-56).

In recent years, the use of music as an intervention has increased and this, to some extent, might reflect the growing interest in complementary therapies (Evans, 2002). Music has been used for patients of all ages, from infants, children, and adults to older adults, and as an intervention before procedures or operations and after procedures or operations in order to reduce anxiety or pain. Music often is used in conjunction with other activities, such as education programs, videos, and relaxing massages (Evans, 2002).

The common theory behind music therapy is that music acts as a distracter (Nilsson, 2008). The basic assumption for this is the fact that music is a form of communication and has been described as a universal language; thus, it can provide an escape from negative stimuli, such as pain and anxiety, to something pleasant and encouraging (Nilsson, 2008). A patient's mind can escape into his or her own familiar and soothing world (Nilsson, 2008) (Trythall, 2006).

While we think of music as something created by humans, the natural world offers beautiful sounds that are also soothing and can reduce stress levels. For example, in the early morning hours, the birds begin calling one another. It is music to my ears and something that refreshes me every time I hear it. The Mourning Dove’s “coo-coo-cocoo” is almost sorrowful. The Kingfisher’s chatter is exciting, while the Cardinal’s “cheer, cheer, cheer, birdie, birdie, birdie” is happy and bright. Then there is the sound of the rain falling on the roof or in the river where the fish splash about thinking the rain is a bug landing on the surface. Frogs sing their various songs and the wind shifts the leaves on the trees. Hospitals with public gardens can do much to attract birds which will serenade us while we contemplate what lies before us.

Evans, D. (2002). The effectiveness of music as an intervention for hospital patients: a systematic review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 37(1), 8–18. http://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.2002.02052.x

Nilsson, U. (2008). The anxiety- and pain-reducing effects of music interventions: a systematic review. AORN Journal, 87(4), 780–807. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.aorn.2007.09.013

Trythall, S. J. S. (2006). Live music in hospitals: a new “alternative” therapy. The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health, 126(3), 113–114. http://doi.org/10.1177/146642400612600310