Music as a healing modality is probably as old as the first sound made by a man or a woman. Early humans used sounds in sacred and ritualistic ways to promote fertility, accept death, grow crops, and commemorate events. Sound and music have been used in healing practices by virtually every culture throughout history (Cantello, 2004; Wigram, Pedersen, & Bonde, 2004).
Pythagoras, a Greek philosopher, stated that music contributes to the natural harmony of the mind and the body (Moris & Linos, 2012). He taught his students to change their worries, fears, sorrows, and anger by singing and playing a musical instrument daily. Other Western philosophers, such as Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Nietzsche, considered the practical and theoretical role of music in relation to a person’s health. Plato discussed the influence of music on the human mind (American Music Therapy Association [AMTA], 2017). Florence Nightingale understood the positive effects of harmonic and continuous sounds when she used wind instruments to help her patients heal (Moris & Linos, 2012).
Profound scientific, medical, psychological, cognitive, physical, social, and spiritual connections are involved in the power of sound and music. Healing with music combines musical experiences with the inherent universal forms in music to heal the body, mind, and spirit. Like a tuning fork for the brain, music can stimulate specific regions to soothe emotions, boost the capacity for learning, and unlock creative genius (AMTA, 2014).
Today, more people listen to music than ever before in the history of the world, and there are more avenues for experiencing music than anyone could have predicted years ago. Scientists can determine which neurons in the brain are firing when music is playing. By using functional magnetic resonance images (MRIs), scientists can study how specific areas of the brain are activated while the individual listens to music. The field of music cognition (the study of music as a product of the human mind) existed before MRIs, but there has been significant growth in this field of research since the invention and utilization of MRIs.