Karyn Stuart - Music and musicking: The brain and the heart of the matter
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Nov. 4, 2014•0 likes•1,356 views
Karyn Stuart - Music and musicking: The brain and the heart of the matter
Nov. 4, 2014•0 likes•1,356 views
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Karyn Stuart - Music and musicking: The brain and the heart of the matter
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Karyn Stuart - Music and musicking: The brain and the heart of the matter
- 2. Music: elements, our experience and journey through life Music and the brain / emotion Music Therapy and Musicking with the elderly population › Research › Tips for making music
- 4. Pitch Timbre Dynamics Melody Contour Pulse and Rhythm Tempo Meter
- 6. Physiology Uplifting, inspiring, energising Powerfully emotive Communicative/expressive Unifying Nostalgic Cultural
- 9. Neurons activated Auditory cortex: listening and processing Frontal lobes: music structure planning Mesolimbic system: motivation, pleasure, dopamine production Cerebellum: timing
- 10. Hippocampus: memory Language centres Reading music: Visual cortex Performing music: › Frontal lobe › Motor Cortex › Sensory Cortex
- 12. Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness. MAYA ANGELOU
- 13. Cerebellum Amygdala Frontal Lobe Nucleus Accumbens: reward Limbic system: memory
- 14. Unlocking ‘The Music Child’ (Nordoff Robbins, 1977) What happens between us in the music... the shared emotional, communicative meaning Connecting
- 15. To music is to take part, in any capacity, in a musical performance, whether by performing listening rehearsing practising composing dancing (Small, 1998)
- 16. Familiarity, predictability and feelings of security (AMTA). Listening to and talking about familiar music can provide a source of comfort and reassurance. It can encourage communication through eye contact, touch and changes in facial expression. Singing with or to the person can provide meaningful human contact (Lipe, 1995). Enhanced care environment for the person with dementia: Caregiver singing (Götell)
- 17. Self-respect and mastery (Koger, Chapin, & Brotons, 1999); Boost self-esteem (Killick & Allan, 1999). Opportunities for assertion of the dementia sufferer’s own will or desire – a sense of control. (Kitwood & Bredin, 1992) Self expression and creativity (Winnicott) Music can be a source of fun, relaxation and a distraction from illness, pain and distress. Anxiety alleviation
- 18. Happy and sad memories Individualised music Reminiscence and life review Attune: Mirror what you see Be open to surprises! Musicking: encourage not coerce CONNECTION
- 19. “I don’t know how anyone can live without music.” As said by an elderly gentleman in the early stages of progressive dementia improvising on a xylophone during a music therapy session to express his feelings. (AMTA)
- 20. Thankyou Karyn Stuart Music Therapist B. OT (Stell) MMus Music Therapy (UP) Karynlesley@hotmail.com Interesting reading: Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain (Oliver Sacks, 2007) This is Your Brain on Music (David Levitin)
Editor's Notes
- Good afternoon. My name is Karyn Stuart and I’m a music therapist from Cape Town. I will be presenting on Music and Musicking: The brain and the heart of the matter. I approach this topic as a music therapist. Although before studying music therapy, I worked for several years as an occupational therapist in neurology. I’m not a neurologist, but the impact and the influence that music, in all its forms, has on us physically, psychologically and cognitively is of importance for music therapists. We use music as a therapeutic medium in our everyday work, across all ages.
- Now the topic around the power of music is vast. We could be here all week talking about the impact of music and how it affects us. I’ve taken a slightly more focused look at music in three areas: firstly music building blocks and our experience of music. Then we’ll have an overview of music and its impact on the brain and emotion and finally we’ll look at the use of music with the elderly, some of the research around it as well some ideas and tips when making music with them. As a music therapist, I can’t really do a presentation without including some kind of interactive music making, so please be aware that I’ll be getting your musical juices flowing...
- Throughout history, music has been part of human life. For centuries, across all cultures and nations, people have danced, moved, created, sung, played, shared and told stories through, in, and around music. From cavemen creating sounds using pieces of wood to Justin Bieber, there is something about music that beguiles, amazes and stirs us, almost inexplicably. I wonder how it is that Stravinsky, a famous composer, remarked that music is powerless to express anything at all. He believed that music is just that: music. I would beg to differ, as I’m sure many people would. In history, everyone engaged in making music together. This primal role of making music seems to have shifted and today we have a special class of composers and performers and the rest of us resort to passive listening. We are inherently musical. The notion of core musicality stands out amongst music therapists and anthropologists. Even Confucius said that “The inner nature of man is the province of music.” We are born with an innate core capacity to respond to and make music. Now, not everyone ends up being a Mozart, Freddie Mercury, or Justin Beiber… but as I said, we are all inherently musical. As a music therapist, I can’t really do a presentation without including some kind of interactive music making, so please be aware that I’ll be getting your musical juices flowing... Musical Icebreaker: We are inherently musical! (Build a rhythm or section) Any thoughts on that? Anyone surprised to discover that they are a musician?
- Now before we delve into what is music and really how it affects us, it’s important to get a shared understanding of the building blocks of music, the basic elements that, when put together, create music. Elements of music Pitch is the particular frequency of a tone or note. A woman’s soprano voice is high-pitched. My microwave pings on the note Bb. That’s also pitch. Timbre: is often described as the sound colour and is what distinguishes one instrument from another. A guitar can have a warm tone, and a woman’s voice can have a soft, sweet tone. Dynamics refer to the louds and softs within music. The swelling of volume. Melody refers to the tune, and we can associate different feelings with melody. The soaring romantic melodies of a violin makes the girl meets boy movie that much more romantic. Contour refers to the movement of the melody. It’s overall shape. Pulse and rhythm: PRACTICAL. Pulse is the steady beat of the piece. Rhythm is the duration of notes and the way they’re grouped together within the beat. Tempo is the speed of the piece. Slow, vs hurried, vivave vs andante. Meter is our experience of the beats/rhythms of the music. The easiest distinctions are between a march 2/4 and a waltz ¾. So coming back to the notion that we are inherently musical, let’s think about our bodies for a moment. We have many musical qualities: our hearts beat loud/soft, slow and fast. Our voices have a pitch, a tone quality, contour. We walk with a certain pulse and rhythm. Our arm movements are graceful or fragmented. Our brain waves have a regular oscillation. Our waking and sleeping even have rhythms to them. In every sense of the word, we are musical beings. We are wired to respond to music. When we listen to music, we hear it as a whole not just as disparate elements of pitch, rhythm etc. We perceive and organise these musical events are coherent experiences.
- What are some of the thoughts about music as a whole: The composer Edgard Varese defined music as organised sound. John Blacking, an anthropologist took this further and said it’s humanly organised sound. Music is not necessarily the sound of cars on the road, although they can have a rhythm and a harsh tone. So music is really what we perceive and experience it to be…
- Our experience of music is personal and unique, based on our characteristics, culture, how we were raised. However, there are some generalisations: music impacts us physiologically: it influences our heart rates, blood pressure, our mood, our pupils dilate, it even positively impacts our immune system. The philosopher Nietsche, said that “we listen to music with our muscles”. We almost unconsciously tap our feet or nod our heads. Music coerces us in a way. Music can be energising and uplifting. It can motive us to push harder in an aerobics class. This is unique to every person. What might bring me to tears of joy might bring you to tears of boredom. Music is communicative and expressive. Alvarez (1992) speaks about singing as a way of communicating. Many people use it to express their emotions around topics. Many people connect with lyrics and the music of certain artists and feel connected with the pain they are expressing. In many instances, it is easier and more socially acceptable to express certain concepts and emotions in song form, than just telling someone about how you’re feeling. Cook (1998) says the following: “Music doesn’t just happen. It is what we make it, and what we make of it. People think through music, decide who they are through it and express themselves through it.” Music brings people together. David Stewart speaks about music as an active and transformative social force. It is an attractor, a connector and a motivator. National anthems, songs used in war times, and throughout history, songs have been used to help cope with struggles and create a sense of belonging: negro spirituals, church hymns, songs of the struggle. Our experience of music is also cultural: my dad gets tearful when the Scottish national anthem is played. Even though he was born in SA, Scotland is the land of our ancestors and he feels a strong connection to the culture and music. "Music has to do with contexts and associations: personal, cultural and social.” John Blacking, 1995, Anthropologist . Songs contain a sense of nostalgia especially when you hear a song from your past. It can bring back all those feelings and memories.
- Music forms an important part of daily living from when we are born right through our deaths. Inside the womb, surrounded by amniotic fluid, the fetus hears sounds: the heartbeat of its mother, the timbre and tone of her and other voices: conversations, environmental noises and music. We’re born with this innate capacity to communicate and respond to music. The pre-verbal communication between carers and infants is musical in nature. Infants are listening and reacting to the pitch, contours, the timbre and the tone and other musical elements in the voices of those around them. You will have noticed that many people suddenly speak differently around babies. We call this ‘Motherese’. Our voices change; our facial expressions get animated and reflect some of the baby’s movements and sounds. We do this instinctually. Through this, babies learn about communication. Lullabies and play songs form part of bonding and relationship development. Play songs and nursery rhymes help children learn about themselves and the world around them. Songs can help teach concepts like the Alphabet song, they can help children learn about their bodies, about crossing the road safely. During adolescence, the years of self-discovery and identity formation, teenagers often express themselves through music preferences. Liking music that is far removed from what their parents know and like, in a way expresses their desire for independence from their parents. Which is why many parents are horrified at the music their teens listen to. Also, in many cultures, music forms part of the rites of passage ceremonies and rituals in which young men and women participate. Music is a part of celebrations like birthdays, Christmas carols and church hymns, and weddings, sports events, funerals and we use it for our entertainment.
- Brain scan: Here we can see compare the PET (Positron emission tomography) scans of a brain at rest vs a brain reacting to music. See how there are many areas in the brain in both hemispheres that are lit up. This illustrates how there is no one ‘music centre’ in the brain. Listening to and playing music involves several regions of the brain.
- David Levitin, who wrote fascinating book This if Your Brain on Music’, describes how listening to music causes a cascade of brain regions to activate: The auditory cortex for initial processing of the components of the sound. The frontal lobes involved in processing musical structure and expectations The mesolimbic system involved in arousal, pleasure and the production of dopamine, which is our feel-good hormone (which explains why music improves people’s mood!) The cerebellum and basal ganglia were active throughout, processing the rhythm and meter Cerebellum is usually thought of as the part of the brain that guides our movement. Daniel Levitin and his colleagues found that there were strong activations in the cerebellum when they asked people to listen to music (but not noise).The cerebellum appeared to be tracking the beat. Tapping along with the music, involves the cerebellum’s timing circuits.
- Following along to music recruits additional regions of the brain including the hippocampus, which is our memory centre. Listening to and recalling lyrics involved the language centres (Broca and Wernicke) temporal lobes. Reading music involved the visual cortex (back of your head). Performing music, regarding of what you play or if you sing or conduct, involves the frontal lobes for planning and the motor cortex (just underneath the top of your head) and sensory cortex which provides the tactile feedback that you’ve pressed the right note, or moved your hand where it needs to go.
- So our neurons, our primary brain cells, firing all over when we listen to music and participate in making music. Researchers (Glenn Schellenberg) have found that not only are there immediate effects of music like enhanced mood or elevated heart rate, but long term effects. Music listening changes certain neural circuits and the concentration of links between the various regions of our brains, as well as across the left and right hemispheres.
- Music taps into the primitive brain structures involved with emotion, motivation and reward. Schmahmann noted that the cerebellum contains massive connections to the emotion centres of the brain – the amygdale and the frontal lobe which is the part of the brain involved in planning and impulse control. The emotions we experience in response to music involve the primitive regions of our brains Amygdala and the Nucleus Accumbens, which is the centre of the brain’s reward system, playing an important part in pleasure and addiction. Added to this, when we listen to music we love, it activates memory traces of emotional times in our lives. So this involves the limbic system which is the part of the brain that associates sounds, feelings, smells and other senses with memories. This might help explain why some people are moved by Beethoven’s Violin Sonatas and some people are not. Our emotional memories are powerful. Our preferences also contribute to our emotional reaction to music.
- The concept of there being a ‘core musicality’ in all humans has been recognised both in the fields of music therapy and anthropology for some time. Music therapists speak of ‘the music child’ and this is one of the core concepts of music therapy practice. This concept was created by pioneer music therapists Clive Robbins and Paul Nordoff and it refers to the idea that there is a creative and healthy part inside each of us that remains intact even in the midst of disability, illness and trauma. In other words, no matter how traumatised or ill a person is, they are still able to ‘play’ and enter into a reciprocal musical relationship. In music therapy and through music, a person is invited to express him or herself through sounds. The sounds and music they make says something about their expressive, emotional and communication capacities. It’s about inviting someone, even in the midst of their anxiety, dementia, illness, and connecting with them through music.
- The concept of Musicking helps us to think about music making a little differently. Christopher Small, also a music therapist, started upon the notion that music is a verb, not a noun. So, to ‘music’, is to take part in any capacity in making music, whether it’s performing, listening, rehearsing, practising, composing, dancing. I think this is very helpful to remember when working with others in music. One does not need to be as skilled on the piano as Chopin, or physically playing the drum in order to experience the benefits of music. People in the next room and nurses past during music group, or the older lady refusing to participate, are also part of the musicking, and in a small way benefitting from music.
- It’s probably because music is all the things we’ve just looked at: present throughout our lives, the physiological and emotional impact on us etc that late adulthood musical memories remain deep-rooted. So it makes for a wonderful and meaningful intervention with the elderly population. Music is a form of sensory stimulation, which provokes responses due to the familiarity, predictability and feelings of security associated with it (AMTA). Lipe comments that listening to and talking about familiar music can provide a source of comfort and reassurance (Lipe, 1995). A sing-a-long with old favourites provides enjoyment and topics through which to promote conversation and social interaction. Theme-based music groups can challenge cognitive skills, encourage social interaction and improve mood. Even people in later stages of dementia can benefit from involvement with music therapy. It can encourage communication through eye contact, touch and changes in facial expression. Singing with or to the person can provide meaningful human contact (Lipe, 1995). Music can enhance the care environment: Another researcher Gotell and her colleagues analysed videos of caregivers singing with their elderly patients during the morning washing and dressing routines and they saw obvious changes in the elderly person’s posture, body and sensory awareness; they had stronger and more symmetric movements and had a better sense of their surroundings. They were also able to perform the functional tasks with intention and purpose. So almost as though the caregiver’s singing drew out the person’s capabilities.
- As music demands reality-oriented behaviour in the present without risk of failure, even the most cognitively impaired older adults master musical tasks with enhanced self-respect (Brotons, Koger, & Pickett-Cooper, 1997; Koger, Chapin, & Brotons, 1999). This is so important and in such contrast to what we know about the loss of self respect in older persons. This can lead to relieving the anxiety and behavioural changes brought about by the deterioration of memory. The feelings of worthlessness and uselessness that arise from the progressive worsening of function are transformed into pride when people are shown that they are still capable of being creative and can learn new skills (Hanser, 1999). This self-confidence can have great effects physically and emotionally – posture and perception can improve, as can motivation and volition. Through music, a frail elderly person can be invited to conduct how the music will sound, or choose a favourite song, and through this kind of need-based music making, can feel a sense of control in the midst of her apparent helplessness. The use of well-known songs from an elderly person’s youth (pre-recorded or not) facilitates reminiscence, which in turn stimulates the cognitive processes. Even in the presence of limited speech or aphasia, a person with dementia can potentially recall the words and tunes quite coherently. Again, contributing to his or her sense of control and feelings of ‘being able’. Winnicott speaks about the importance of play and creativity to our emotional health (1971). Singing and playing music is a medium for play, having fun, relaxing and socialising with others in a group. It helps us express ourselves without using words. Especially when words are difficult to remember and logic begins to falter. Music can helpful as a distraction from the reality of illness and loss. It’s also a way of managing pain. Favourite recorded music also can be helpful in decreasing problem behaviours associated with agitation or aggression. There is a note of caution though. The TV or radio, however, do not provide sufficient stimulation, as they only add to ‘acoustic pollution’ (Morrison, 1997) and this music ends up meaningless.
- There are a few tips I’d like to share with you about making the most of music with the elderly: Firstly, keep in mind that music illicit memories and that sometimes there are not happy memories. And that’s ok. There’s been a lot of research lately on the use of preferred music with the elderly in alleviating pain, agitation and anxiety. Preferred music, using the individual person’s favourite songs/music is more effective than the generic classical music. Reminiscence and life reviews are some lovely ways of facilitating connection and interaction. It be facilitated through musical associations from a person's past. This may be particularly important for persons with dementia who may not be able to reminisce independently. Singing and playing music from their era or childhood and facilitating discussions about the music, the times, the lifestyle. Two principles that are important are: be flexible and attune to what you see. In other words when you’re singing with or to someone, use the elements of your voice and song to reflect what you see. Adjust to their tempo and volume. And be ready to take cues from them. If you’re in a group, see what movements are being done and go with it. If you’re making live music, this is so much easier because you can adapt to the group and its needs. Be open to surprises. Story of Aunty B Musicking: no coercion: it’s about connecting.
- My thoughts are reflected in this gentleman’s quote…