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I firmly believe the healing power of music! When my daughter was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for Neuroblastoma, we turned to an organization called Songs of Love. They write/make free custom songs for children in need. All you have to do is fill out a simple questionnaire...a few weeks later a special CD is delivered to your child.

I saw first hand a dramatic change in my daughter's demeanor when she heard her name sung to an upbeat tune, it brightened her day. She's ask to have it played over and over during some of her toughest days in the hospital. It brings a tear to my eye just thinking about the 19,000+ kids who have received their own song from the amazing group of musicians at SongsofLove.org.

As a long-time listener to John Schaefer and New Sounds, I became interested in "ambient" music. I keep some on my Ipod at all times. When I am in a cab, late, trying to get somewhere in a timely manner and I feel like I am going to explode. I just plug in Michael Nyman, Lisa Gerrard, or something similar and it is literally an off switch to the stress. Of course, after years of listening...it's Pavlovian!

targeted musical therapy--This is particularly relevant to Sharry Edwards' work in Athens, Ohio. (I have no personal stake in her work. I just find it very interesting.)

Right but you don't necessarily want familiar during a procedure because you don't want to associate your favorite music with something unpleasant.

My 5-year-old daughter has Sensory Processing Disorder and began a Therapeutic Listening program for 30 min/2x a day to help her with reducing anxiety, reducing auditory and overall sensory defensiveness a year ago through her OT (Giant Leaps OT). We have seen incredible results in her ability to modulate sensory input. Here's info on the specific program: www.vitallinks.net

Are the doctors familiar with the sound-healing research of Sharry Edwards, near Athens Ohio since the mid-1980s? Her organization is called SoundHealth.
I am only beginning to study the effect of sound frequencies on physical conditions, and I would be very interested in hearing any recommendations for study from the doctors.

When I was 19 years old, I went to the Toronto General Hospital to have my wisdom teeth taken out. I had brought my cd player with me and the dentist/doctor in charge suggested that I listen to it during the surgery. I was surprised by his suggestion but thought, hey why not? I spent the entire surgery listening to Enya.

Yes, music can certainly help patients relax. In my case, it took my mind off the sound of dentist drills, needles, and other torturous dental devices.

Does music have a positive effect? It depends...
I'm a physician at a hospital, where there is music piped in everywhere. Soft rock music, which I abhor. It does not have a positive effect on me. Nor does it, when I get my medical services from this hospital. I'd prefer SILENCE!

I often use music for mood elevation.

It was inevitable that science would eventually come to recognize that the profound reality of the human person is more than psychosomatic; we are psychosomatized spirits, and inspired music, with its true orgin in the spirit, resonates with that nucleus of the person that is non-quantifiable.

Music therapy is an established healthcare profession that has had its own higher education training programs for more than fifty years and we're even recognized by the state with a license needed for practice. There are lots of people doing lots of wonderful things with music all over the world, but music therapists are professionals with specific training.

As a music therapist in a NYC hospital, I apply live music only, and how specifically the music is used depends entirely on the patient and where they are at a given moment. I find recorded music to be much less useful when working directly with patients because it doesn't have the ability to change in the moment based on the patient's reactions. For instance, if I'm helping a patient to relax and I'm playing and singing for him live, I can change the tempo with his breathing or heart rate as we go along. Or, if I'm working with someone who begins to have an emotional reaction to the music, I can change various musical elements (including timbre, tempo, and dynamics) in order to facilitate a safe and positive experience for my patient.

I don't think that just anyone can apply music. Music affects our emotions in a way that can become unsafe for people who are vulnerable-- in my case, people with life-threatning illnesses and their families. The psychotherapeutic training that music therapists have is important when you're working with such an evocative medium as music.

we have all observed how music can relax. I guess it's a short step for it to have therapeutic value. What about the opposite? How about the masses being permanently tranquilized with ubiquitous elevator music, pop music to dull the mind, and mindless rhythms being repeated over and over on the radio?

I'm wondering about the therapeutic effects of actually learning an instrument, and playing an instrument (or singing) versus listening to music.

I meant "bond," not bound.

Music Therapy is used extensively with children who have difficulty verbalizing such as children with autism. What research is currently being done to design target music therapies for this population of children?

I'm curious as to what your guests think about the Hemi-Sync products and binaural beating? http://www.hemi-sync.com/

As a musician, I have seen and felt firsthand the positive effects of music on the sick as well as the healthy. I've performed in many hospitals and homes for the elderly, and performing for them enriches my life as much as it does theirs!

As a musician, I have seen and felt firsthand the positive effects of music on the sick as well as the healthy. I've performed in many hospitals and homes for the elderly, and performing for them enriches my life as much as it does theirs!

how about Kurt Cobain and Nirvana as the music on hold for the Suicide Help Line?

In the documentary, The Weeping Camel, a shaman was called to help a camel bound with her calf, who would have died otherwise. The shaman sang to the camel, who then accepted her calf after a few hours of therapeutic song.

This is interesting. I was telling my neighbor yesterday that when I am at my angriest, I always listen to Nine Inch Nails and really only then. If I blast NIN when mad, it helps me release the anger. I suspect it works because that music is emotionally compatible to where I am, at that moment.

Keep in mind: To hear - whether a Beethoven sonata or a car crash - requires the body to be set in motion. Some sounds (music, suportive conversation, babbling brooks) allow us to relax, while others (explosions, crashes, screams) cause us to tense up.