Volume 3                                    (THIS ISSUE CONTAINS TIME SENSITIVE MATERIAL)                                        Issue 10
     IN THE NEWS - May 16 - May 31, 2009
  • Hearing Through Your Bones
    U.S. News & World Report - Washington, DC, USA - May 15, 2009
    http://www.usnews.com/articles/science/2009/05/15/hearing-through-your-bones.html

    • A recent report from the Department of Veterans Affairs found that 58,000 of the 1.3 million soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan are on disability for hearing loss...The fact that sound travels through the skull has been recognized for ages. Beethoven, for example, found a way to hear music through his jaw after he became deaf, by biting a rod attached to his piano. Bone-conducted hearing also explains why we sound strange to ourselves on a recording: we’re used to hearing our voice through bone-conducted sound-waves; when it comes exclusively through our ear canal, our voice seems distorted. Despite extensive study, however, the phenomenon is not well understood.

  • What Bach and Beethoven have to say to Bjork
    Brisbane Times - Brisbane, Queensland, Australia - May 18, 2009
    http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/entertainment/what-bach-and-beethoven-have-to-say-to-bjork-20090518-b7hq.html

    It may be widely thought of as a dying art, but classical music has been gathering momentum for decades. Today there are more orchestras, more opera houses and more classical music concert audiences worldwide than any other time in history. Ross says there is no reason classical music cannot become enormously popular once again.

  • Water Woodstock for Peace, Health & Sustainability
     PR Web - Ferndale, WA, USA - USA - May 18, 2009
    http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/05/prweb2426294.htm

    Music industry standards have changed many times over history, including the shifting of musical instrument tunings away from 528 Hz--the C-note used by Gregorian monks. This ancient musical standard will be transferred into modern songs and sent out across the waters as a thoughtful expression of thanks for all that water provides. The consciousness portion involves the simultaneous accompaniment of music and voice by expressions of gratitude. A world harmonic LOVE wave is planned to circle the earth beginning at 6 PM PST on Sunday, June 21st, and return to the Western Americas 81 minutes later. For a total of 90 minutes, people worldwide will transmit and receive a sonic hug, potentially impacting everything hydrated.

  • Arts appear to play role in brain development
    Baltimore Sun - Baltimore, MD, USA - May 18, 2009
    http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.arts18may18,0,1345340.story

    • Scientists and educators aware of the gap between basic research and the school systems are beginning to share findings, such as at this month's seminar on the brain and the arts held at Baltimore's American Visionary Art Museum. Much of the research into the arts has centered on music and the brain. One researcher studying students who go to an arts high school found a correlation between those who were trained in music and their ability to do geometry. Yet another four-year study, being conducted by Ellen Winner of Boston College and Gottfried Schlaug of Harvard, is looking at the effects playing the piano or the violin has on students who are in elementary school.

  • Music and science in perfect harmony at the University of York
    The Press in York - York, North Yorkshire, UK- May 18, 2009
    http://www.thepress.co.uk/news/education/4375748.Music_and_science_in_perfect_harmony_at_the_University_of_York/

    • A sound installation in the foyer of the music research centre at the University of York proved a big attraction for visitors and concert-goers...Physicists at the University of York lead research in this area and an MSc in Fusion Energy is starting in October 2009.

  • Back into the world of sound
    Polish Market - Warsaw, Poland - May 19, 2009
    http://www.polishmarket.com.pl/document/:20029?p=%2Flate%2F

    • For the 9th time the most influential specialists in the fields of physiology and pathology of hearing, otology, otosurgery, audiology, acoustics, psychoacoustics, biophysics, bioengineering, psychology, speech-language therapy and education met to discuss the current state and future of auditory implants implementation, partial deafness treatment further implementation, development of rehabilitation and telemedicine and related subjects at a European symposium on pediatric cochlear implantation (ESPCI).

  • Springfield women use Japanese healing art
    Chicago Tribune - Chicago, IL, USA - May 19, 2009
    http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2009/may/18/health/chi-ap-il-reiki

    • Reiki (pronounced RAY-key) is a Japanese healing technique and form of alternative medicine that practitioners believe adjusts and replenishes “life-force energy” inside and outside the body to promote relaxation and the relief of pain and stress. Often promoted and practiced by nuns, Reiki also is something the nation's Catholic hierarchy says should be banned from Catholic institutions.

Portland-based Allegro, an independent distributor of music, video and audio books, is acquiring substantially all of the assets and certain liabilities of Music Design, a third-party distributor of relaxation music and self-help CDs that was a subsidiary of Virgin Records.

Using a system of underwater hydrophones that can record sounds from hundreds of miles away, a team of scientists from Oregon State University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has documented the presence of endangered North Atlantic right whales in an area they were thought to be extinct. The discovery is particularly important, researchers say, because it was in an area that may be opened to shipping if the melting of polar ice continues, as expected.

Kobb, 23, started working for Iowa Hospice after graduating in December 2008 from the University of Michigan with a degree in music therapy. She is one of three music therapists who provide the service in the 88 countries served by Iowa Hospice. The organization, which helps comfort terminally ill patients, ha offered music therapy since the first office opened in Johnston in June 2005. More than 60 percent of Hospice pateints in teh muscatine area now receive music therapy to promote physical and mental well-being, said branch director Peggy Swails.

Lehrer is a writer and researcher who has studied and worked in a neuroscience lab, yet points out that science is not the only path to knowledge, and that in terms of understanding the brain, art paved the way...“Plato believed that only consonant musical pitches -- since they vibrated in neat geometrical ratios -- were conducive to rational thinking, which is when ‘the passions work at the direction of reason.’ Unfortunately, this meant systematically silencing all dissonant notes and patterns, since dissonance unsettled the soul. Feelings were dangerous.

A study presented May 21st at the meeting of the Acoustical Society of America finds that fluent speakers of tonal languages, such as Cantonese, are much more likely to have perfect pitch than are speakers of English and other atonal languages. That’s the finding of a study by U.C. San Diego and U.S.C. researchers presented May 21st at the Acoustical Society of America meeting in Portland, Oregon.

The results of the Brunel University study reveal how the cardiovascular benefits of training can be boosted by running in time to your favourite beats. Matching the beat of the music with the tempo of the exercise can also regulate your movement and reduce the oxygen required during running by up to 6 per cent.

Marc, 13, has cerebral palsy, but every Thursday at 4 p.m., that doesn't really matter. Every Thursday, for half an hour, Marc gets lost in musical therapy. He plays dozens of instruments, sings while spelling and listens to all kinds of tunes. I just think that kids with special needs, a lot of times it's such a challenge for them to communicate. What music does, it gives them that voice. If they're playing a drum or music on a keyboard, they have control of that."

About 2,600 years ago, the sage Panini had re-established the science of Sanskrit grammar in his Ashtadhayi and even today it is considered as the standard authority. Westerners describe Sanskrit as one of the greatest productions of the human mind. The philologists term it as an ideal scientific work; the grammarians have identified it to be the mother of most Indo-European languages, and also of Persian, Kurdish or Armenian. Research scholars have identified around 90 languages of the world, especially English, Greek, Latin and Arabic to have either directly or indirectly derived words from Sanskrit; it has been noticed by Dr. Varhadpande that about 25 percent of the words in English have emerged from Sanskrit

Playing music seems to reduce pain and encourage feeding in premature infants, University of Alberta researchers report. Music is being widely used in neonatal units across North America, but how benefial it is to the infants remains unclear. Lead researcher Dr. Manoj Kumar, an assistant clinical professor in the neonatal division of pediatrics department at the University, said the study "found some evidence to suggest that music may have beneficial effects in terms of physiological parameters, behavioral states and pain reduction durin painful medical procedures in the neonates." "Music was also noted to improve oral feeding among the pre-term infants who were having difficulty making transition to oral feeding," he said.

A total of 17 sound artists from Roosevelt, Princeton and New York City created experimental audio works for the house tour. "Welcome Sound: Audio Art in Roosevelt Homes" 1-5 p.m., visitors can explore cutting-edge audio art works that have been created by established and emerging artists to transform existing spaces throughout town.

A total of 17 sound artists from Roosevelt, Princeton and New York City created experimental audio works for the house tour. "Welcome Sound: Audio Art in Roosevelt Homes" 1-5 p.m., visitors can explore cutting-edge audio art works that have been created by established and emerging artists to transform existing spaces throughout town.

The two are “sound designers.” Matthew is quick to point out, “The music is there to support the scents, and not the other way around.” Matthew himself is the dramatist, having written the actual libretto titled “Green Aria,” and he views Laudamiel as composer to his conductor.

The mating song of a blue whale has been recorded for the first time in New York waters, signaling the surprising presence of the world's largest animal just 70 miles off the coast of Long Island...Blue whales are rarely spotted in coastal waters of the eastern United States. Clark said he had previously recorded them far offshore, as they migrated from Halifax and Newfoundland to feed along the Grand Banks and then headed south toward the Caribbean.

Happy Dan the Music Man made a stop at Hadley at Elaine Care and Rehabilitation Center last week bearing bubbles for blowing, musical instruments for playing, scarves for waving, songs for singing, balloons for shaping into all manner of things - and kids...After leaving a high-powered, high-paid urban interior design business awhile back, Julty has been creating music and movement events with children for 14 years. In an age of electronic entertainment, "I'm on a mission to keep live singing alive," he said, "carrying on an old tradition."

Sound healing is fast becoming internationally respected as an effective modality in the healing process for many physical, emotional and spiritual conditions and maladies. This article seeks to offer some background on the Himalayan (often referred to as Tibetan) bowls and their role in the healing process for cancer patients. The Bowls are part of a trinity of Tibetan spiritual sound objects used for healing; the Singing Bowls, the Ganta and the Tingsha’s. The Bowls emit a quieting, centering energy; the Ganta (bell) a motivating and unifying influence; and the Tingsha’sstimulate energy fields. The ancient bowls actually come from various Himalayan regions including Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan and are made from a consecrated seven metal alloy. Prayers and mantras were chanted into them during their creation embedding sacred energy.

Now, for the first time, this 18th Century composition has been played as it might have been heard. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh carried out the study, which was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)...The team at Edinburgh University developed a system that enabled them to design the Lituus from the best guesses of its shape and range of notes.

The professor, whose groundbreaking research has already deconstructed the opening chord to The Beatles’ A Hard Days Night, has now made an attempt at analyzing the blues progression, which is said to be the ‘most famous chord progression in modern music’...He looks at a common blues chord progression that links them all together. According to him, the harmonic sequence is "perfect" and compares the experience of listening to the progression to a roller coaster.

  • A healthy dose of art
    Kentucky.com - Lexington, KY, USA - May 31, 2009
    http://www.kentucky.com/lexgo/arts/story/813724.html

    By incorporating art, both visual and performing, Karpf said, the hospital becomes more inviting and comforting for patients. The art is selected to reflect Kentucky. One piece, a 90-foot multimedia wall at the entrance, will be a constantly changing display of images from across the commonwealth The idea is to move away from a traditional, sterile hospital environment to something warmer and more conducive to healing. Karpf also talks about establishing music therapy and art therapy programs at the hospital..

     NEW BOOK:
  • Healing Your Brains: The Neurofeedback Solution by Robert Hill, PhD and Eduardo Castro, MD
    http://www.healingmusic.org/Marketplace/Books/Books-H.asp#HealingYourBrains

    Neurofeedback is a scientifically proven form of brain-wave feedback that trains the child’s brain to overcome slow brain-wave activity, and increase and maintain its speed permanently. Neurofeedback is quick, noninvasive, and cost effective. In fact, 80 percent of the time, neurofeedback is effective without any of the side effects associated with drugs commonly used for such childhood disorders as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, sleep disorders, and emotional problems.
     NEW RECORDING:
  • Chakra Clearing and Healing Sound by Terry Oldfield
    http://www.healingmusic.org/Marketplace/CDsAndTapes/CD-O.asp#ChakraClearingAndHealingSound

    A classic from a renowned Emmy Award nominee, and an invaluable tool for healing and meditation practice. The Chakra Clearing Meditation is a guided meditation that uses healing color and breath to clear away old patterns and inhale positive shtengths to each of the seven major energy centers, thus restoring a feeling of healing and self-empowerment. The Healing Sound Meditation is based on the elements of the seven chakras. With deep, soaring flutes, crystal bowls, didgeridoo, and sounds from nature, one is led on a deeply cleansing journey through sound.
     NEW RESEARCH:
  • Saffran, J.R., Griepentrogm G.J. Absolute pitch in infant auditory learning: evidence for developmental reorganization. (2001) Developmental Psychology. Jan;37(1):74-85.

    To what extent do infants represent the absolute pitches of complex auditory stimuli? Two experiments with 8-month-old infants examined the use of absolute and relative pitch cues in a tone-sequence statistical learning task. The results suggest that, given unsegmented stimuli that do not conform to the rules of musical composition, infants are more likely to track patterns of absolute pitches than of relative pitches. A 3rd experiment tested adults with or without musical training on the same statistical learning tasks used in the infant experiments. Unlike the infants, adult listeners relied primarily on relative pitch cues. These results suggest a shift from an initial focus on absolute pitch to the eventual dominance of relative pitch, which, it is argued, is more useful for both music and speech processing.

  • Hartling, L., Shaik, M., Tjosvold, L., Leicht, R., Liang, Y., Kumar, M. Music for medical indications in the neonatal period: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials. (2009) Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal and Neonatal Edition. May;28 [Ahead of publication]

    OBJECTIVE: To conduct a systematic review of the efficacy of music for medical indications in term or preterm neonates. METHODS: We searched 17 electronic databases; subject bibliographies; reference lists; and trials registries. Two reviewers independently screened studies for inclusion, assessed methodological quality, and extracted data. Meta-analysis was not feasible due to heterogeneity in outcomes; a qualitative analysis is presented. RESULTS: Nine randomized trials were included. The methodological quality was generally poor (median Jadad score=1). The outcomes most commonly reported were: physiological measures (heart rate [HR], respiratory rate, oxygen saturation [SaO2]); behavioral state; and pain. Six studies evaluated music for painful procedures: circumcision (3 trials) and heel stick (3 trials). For circumcisions, one high quality pilot study (n=23) showed benefits of music for the outcomes of HR, SaO2, and pain, while two low-quality studies showed no difference. For heel prick, three low quality studies provided some evidence that music may be beneficial primarily for measures of behavior and pain. The remaining studies evaluated music in preterm infants: to improve physiological and behavioral parameters (n=31; benefits observed for behavioral parameters); to reinforce nonnutritive sucking via use of pacifier-activated lullaby (n=32; significant increase in feeding rates); and to influence physiological stability and behaviors in infants with chronic lung disease (n=22; no significant differences for outcomes assessed). CONCLUSIONS: The heterogeneity in study populations, interventions, and outcomes precludes definitive conclusions around efficacy. There is preliminary evidence for some therapeutic benefits of music for specific indications, however, these findings need to be confirmed in methodologically rigorous trials.

  • Brown, J.I., Deducing the Blues. (2009) CMS Notes. May;41(4):13-15.

    The blues progression is undoubtedly the most famous chord progression in modern music. But why is this harmonic sequence so perfect? This paper suggests an answer to the universal and eternal thrill of the blues via roller coasters and a special vertex colouring of the seven cycle. There is no chord progression quite like the 12 bar blues. It forms the basis of what is classic rock n roll. Chuck Berry’s Johnny B. Goode, Elvis Presley’s Hound Dog, Little Richard’s Lucille and Long Tall Sally, The Beatles’ The Word, Led Zeppelin’s Rock n Roll, Loggins and Messina’s Your Mama Don’t Dance, and classics like Rock Around the Clock, Dizzie Miss Lizzie, Bad Boy and Kansas City are all, at heart, blues. And songs like Day Tripper jump out in the way they break out of the blues that they set up so carefully. Read more....
     UPCOMING EVENTS : (Events are also listed on the HMO - Healing Music Events Page)

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