Your Brain on Sound I: The Singing Bowls

January 7, 2018
YOUR BRAIN ON SOUND
Genie Johnson
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Pt I:The Singing Bowls
Genie Johnson
Heartfelt Welcome & Introduction
- 8+ years, -found and first played the singing bowls at a New Year’s Eve prayer vigil
- later, while learning to play them, I also started sharing my poetry at coffee houses
– AC Poetry, a blend of singing and spoken verse, after initially drawing a blank on
stage, I joked my way through it to go on to share a deeply emotive, At one point the
room was so STILL and quiet, it was as if we were all breathing together…
- After several more similar experiences and individuals sharing their stories of
emotional healing with me…
- That sparked years of reading, studying, practicing all things sound related,
studied online with Globe Institute for a Sound Healing Certification while
simultaneously completing 3.5 year coursework to become a Prayer Practitioner
and Spiritual Coach, and Recently wrapped up an associates at Collin to learn more
about biology and human anatomy and the physics of sound…
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Around the Room:
Moving experiences
with sound and/or music!
- Let’s take a moment to be still, go within, and reflect on some of our most
moving/emotional experiences with Sound
- In getting to know each other better, afterwards we’ll go around the room and
share
- 3 Tingshas – 3 Breaths, reminding us to breathe - deeper, following the sound
into the silences, into the subtle and quiet spaces within
- Call to mind a time – when you found that you were particularly moved by a sound
you were hearing…
- Without overthinking it, just allow an experience of being moved by sound
to come to you…
- PAUSE – maybe you were in nature – listening to the breeze through the
trees… maybe listening to a live symphony orchestra… maybe it was a
baby’s laughter… and yes, even could be your favorite song
- Take the next few breaths to allow the details of the experience to come to
life, paying particular attention to how you felt, and perhaps to any
resulting associations that your brain has made to that sound …
- Gently bring awareness back into the room… around the room, name,
describe your experience, & how it made you feel
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“If you want to find the
secrets of the universe,
think in terms of energy,
frequency, and vibration.”
- Nikola Tesla
Read slowly
Let sit for a second before next slide ☺
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Today, together we’ll:
* Embark on an introduction to the science
of sound as it relates to our brains &
emotions
* Explore Mindful Listening as a practice
in achieving a heightened sense of mental
focus via the Singing Bowls
*Agenda Cards
After exploring some of the interesting and trending science of sound,
- it’s my highest hope that you’ll leave with a practical means of more consciously
living in the “The Flow” of life. …
- Today is about expanding our awareness of, the deeper, intrinsic, almost innate
rhythms that Connect us.
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Everything is Vibrating!
Waves, Hertz, & Resonant Frequencies
http://scienceprimer.com/types-of-waves
From the most basic building blocks of life on atomic levels – electrons, protons,
neutrons… all shake and rotate around a buzzing nucleus,
And forming, bonds with other vibrational structures/these atoms - become
molecules, become tissues of our bodies and elements of our planet, and other
planets in our solar system, galaxy, …
Rather we can discern the Sound with our ears or not, all things, largest to smallest
scales and in-between are vibrating and creating waveforms
Types of waves –
Go to the linked site for types of waves –
in showing the different types of waves also talk about FREQUENCY
Note: that the wave of energy is what is moving/propagating across the room…
terms like transverse and longitudinal are descriptions of how the particles
within the wave are moving – in relation to the direction of the wave itself
Point out the circular motion of the surface waves… as a more accurate description
of what must be a result of the forces pulling on each molecule
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Note: circular rotations of the planet can also be thought of as a standing wave with a
frequency…)
All things vibrating, are believed to have a resonant frequency, that is, it vibrates at its
own natural frequency.
AGAIN Frequencies are considered to be the number of waves passing a point / per
unit of time. Most commonly measured in Hertz or waves per second.
I.e. Each of the bowls have a resonant frequency… body organs as well and there’s a
lot of really exciting science about resonance and how it can be used to help improve
our health!!
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https://phys.org/news/2008-02-electron.html
See E = mC2 Differently!
Everything is Vibrating!
As a matter of fact, Matter is standing waveforms?
Along the lines of the wave itself being energy that is propagating through a medium
– have a look at these presently used atomic models…
This is an image of a hydrogen atom on the left and what’s termed as the “possible
orbital” of electrons within it,
and an electron on the right and it’s our first attempts at peering into the quantum
realm.
This is science that I’m still working to wrap my head around, but what strikes me
about this image is that the smaller and smaller scale that we’re able to peek
into/quantum realm of quarks and such,… the more & more space reveals itself… and
possible wave patterns
Before moving forward ask the group are they clear on What’s meant by the term
Frequency? Or resonant frequency?
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Brain Waves & Heart Waves
In further considering frequencies and/or resonant frequencies
… In recent years, since the 20’s really, we’ve been able to measure frequencies of
brain waves, with the Electro-encephalogram, to help discern at least 5 discernable
states of consciousness.
Highlight that the brain, through its brain cells/neurons, is constantly sending and
receiving messages from every part of the body. We use the EEG machine to
measure averages of these individual “firings” while individuals are engaged in things
like everyday ordinary tasks, to extreme states of meditation,
Gamma…, Beta…, Alpha…, Theta, and Delta…
Incidentally the heart’s electromagnetic waves are measured with an EKG machine...
These waves are effected by our beliefs and emotions.
Just waves and frequencies right? And so much more…
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Sound Waves These Days
& Huygens’s Principle
Speak to radial wave front propagating out from a source as original teaching models.
Now we know about things like, Huygens’s Principle which states that within these
wave fronts, the molecules within are also creating smaller wavelets, inside of the
front!
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http://www.MagicAqua.eu
Cymatics!
Note the Smithsonian… Hans Jenny, Gladni, Davinci, African drums over 1000 years
ago…
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“Modern neuroscience has led
to some fascinating advances
in our understanding of why
our ears and emotions have
such a strong bond!”
h t t p : / / w w w. a m p l i f o n . i e / r e so u r c e s / i m p a c t - o f -s o u n d - o n - t h e - b r a i n /
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Resonance and Hearing!
http://www.amplifon.ie/interactive-ear/index.html
Sound waves enter through the ear canal to reach the eardrum. The eardrum then
passes the vibrations through the middle ear bones (ossicles) into the inner ear or
cochlea, which is filled with thousands of tiny hair cells, that first resonate with the
sound waves, before converting the vibrations into electrical signals, which are then
sent to the brain through the hearing nerves.
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Neuroscientists have linked
at least 7 brain regions
with our emotional responses
to sound.
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n o t
Thalamus- Relays sensory data and
helps regulate sleep
Cerebellum- Refines motor functions
and is associated with learning
Hippocampus- Inhibits behavior and
helps form memories/learning
Amygdala- Processes memories and
emotional reactions/learned fear
response
Prefrontal cortex- Linked to
personality and critical decision
-making
Insular cortex- Regulates heartbeat
and is connected to empathy, pain
and social awareness
Broca's area- Affects language
comprehension and generation
7 Regions of Brain Linked with Our
Emotional Responses to Sound
*Not a comprehensive list, but informative.
Clarify not comprehensive… different in different sources, but generally these areas
are highlighted, sometimes in combination with others
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A 2009 report from Sweden's
Lund University put forward
six psychological mechanisms
through which emotions may
be produced when the brain
reacts to sound.
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1) BRAIN STEM REFLEX:
When the acoustic characteristics of
the sound (i.e. loud or dissonant)
signal a "potentially important and
urgent event", causing us to react on
an instinctive level.
6 Psychological Mechanisms through which emotions may be
produced when the brain reacts to sound.
Always listening – we are born with this
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2) EVALUATIVE CONDITIONING:
When an emotion is elicited by sound
because we have heard it repeatedly
in a certain setting, leading to an
association between sound and
setting.
i.e. Pavlov experiments, we are also believed to be born with this ability
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3) EMOTIONAL CONTAGION:
When we perceive the emotion
expressed by a piece of music: the
music doesn't necessarily sound sad,
but rather we recognize it as
expressing sadness.
This is something that’s said to be learned in early development years or the first few
years of life
Curious to consider, sound as a packet of information – carrying things like the shape
of the wave fronts for example, as well as things like the feeling of the one “speaking”
or creating the sound…
As compared to things like how the writer of the music actually felt while writing the
piece, how they intended the piece to make the listener feel, and what associations
the listener has made to the sounds, frequencies, and harmonies/melodies within the
piece as a result of our their own life experiences
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4) VISUAL IMAGERY:
When the structure of a piece of
music makes us imagine certain
scenes or sensations, such as a
rising melody connecting with the
sensation of moving upwards.
This is also said to be learned in early developmental years and builds on the previous
in that it’s almost kinesthetic
i.e. gong sometimes people mention feeling like they are floating – (and then feeling
whatever emotional association they’d make with that feeling)
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5) EPISODIC MEMORY:
Also known as the "Darling, they're
playing our tune" phenomenon - when
a particular sound or piece of music
evokes a powerful memory.
Learned during childhood and later in life…
Mariah Carey I had a Vision of love… ☺
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6) MUSIC EXPECTANCY:
This is tied to our experiences with
music: for instance, an unfamiliar
variation on a standard note
progression may cause feelings of
surprise and curiosity.
I would add, that the opposite is true as well. Familiar melodies can enhance /cause
a shared experience of elation based on mental reward when the next parts of the
progression are known and engaged together. It’s one of the primary positive results
of doing music in community…
A word HERE about my personal theory on why Sacred Sound is so effective at
helping us to stay engaged and mindfully present - no patterns per se
keeps calling us back to attention…
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Aligning Emotions & Mental Focus with SoundCoherence & Mindful Listening
So circling back a bit to how the brain waves can be measured, showing at least 5
discernable states of consciousness. Here is where the rubber/the science, starts to
meet the road/the practice.
We can use sound and mindful listening in practical ways that increase our
awareness of when we are shifting into these states, and then more consciously
engaging them even “off the matt” to help us be in “The Flow” of life.
The singing bowls for example have been scientifically proven through the natural
process of entrainment, to slow the brain waves and to help induce:
- The Relaxation Response which is… the opposite of the fight or flight response,
and is beneficial in most healing regimens,
- Heightened Learning states… like the Theta state where we tend to retain things
learned better…
- Additionally an often overlooked source of energy for humans is the
power available to us through our emotions.
From a purely scientific standpoint, just talking physics of the waveforms of emotions,
which remember play a key role in powering the electro-magnetic field around the
heart, - are also themselves vibrational waveforms – literally energy in motion
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as combined with mental focus and sound, can enhance the experience of said states
by helping inspire us to focus longer.
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“The energy of the mind
is the essence of life.”
- Aristotle
Read Slowly
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Here’s a little assignment for the sonically
curious: Set a timer for five minutes, and
with each exhale, let out a relaxed hum on
one long, sustained tone. Notice how you
feel. Next, set your timer for another five
minutes, and do the same practice, this time
adding an intention, perhaps a part of the
body you want to send vibration to, and a
quality you’d like to cultivate in yourself. If
this piques your interest, try it again
tomorrow, and observe your response.
( c a m e a c r o s s t h i s e x e r c i s e o n l i n e , c a n ’ t r e c a l l w h e r e , b u t i t ’s a g o o d o n e . )
READ through ALOUD First
In the interest of time, we’ll do a shortened 2:30 version
STRONGLY encourage - add your voice and actually make a humming sound for this
exercise… not singing in perfect pitch… HA!
The simple act of Adding your natural hum, here contributes to the larger energy
exchange of the experience
…
AFTER the exercise
Sharing…
A word on mindful listening HERE
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“One proven way sound affects us is by altering our brain waves
through entrainment, the natural process of things falling into
step. Another way sound is known to work on the body is
through the vagus nerve, which starts in the brain just behind
the ears and connects to all of the body’s major organs. Since it
directly stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system—the “rest
and digest” versus the sympathetic or “fight or flight” mode—the
vagus nerve is key to a healthy system. Soothing sounds, and
particularly our own voice in the form of humming, send a
message of calm via the vagus nerve and act as a fast track to
the body’s relaxation response.” http://www.sonima.com/meditation/sound -healing/
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ABOUT THE SINGING BOWLS:
The ancient or older bowls are said to be
made of a 7 metal blend, including metals
like gold, silver, copper, iron… Started
showing up in the west after China invaded
Tibet in the 50’s. Tibetan traditions date
the bowls back as far as 560 -480 B.C.( up to
about 2500 years ago…) but, no one knows
for sure how long they’ve been used
specifically for the purpose of “singing”.
The crystal bowls however, have more
recently debuted on the “sound healing”
scene. The first ones we know of are said
to have been made in the 80’s and have
been being used in healing settings since
the 90’s. They are made mostly of silica
sand(of quartz crystals) and tuned to
specific frequencies.
They are used for stress reduction, deep
relaxation, mindfulness practices… in
schools, medical & psychiatrists offices, by
masseuses,…
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RESEARCH & EFFECTS ON MOOD…
Research findings are showing that Singing bowls
meditations may be a “feasible low-cost, low
technology intervention for reducing feelings of
tension, anxiety, and depression”
The majority of singing bowl studies relate to the
physics of these musical instruments, including the
sonic and wave properties. In one study, singing
bowls were used for emotional healing with high -risk
youth as part of what was termed the best self-
visualization method. The bowls were used in a
psychotherapy model in combination with deep
breathing, visualization, and a loving kindness
meditation. The authors reported that this
combination of healing methods may be a catalyst for
emotional and psychological healing in counseling
sessions.
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HOW TO PLAY THE SINGING BOWLS
Lay the bowl on the flat of your palm or
position on floor on top of an O-ring for
stability and
take a few centering breaths...
There are two primary ways of playing the
bowls:
1. Using an upward arching stroke to gently
glance the side of the bowl
2. With even pressure, slowly glide the
mallet around the upper rim of the bowl
allowing the sound to rise
*Best playing techniques are learned by playing individual bowls over
time.
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A Closing Thought –
“If we accept that sound is vibration and we know that
vibration touches every part of our physical being, then we
understand that sound is heard not only through our ears
but through every cell in our bodies.”
-Dr. Mitchell Gaynor,
As Director of Medical Oncology
and Integrative Medicine at the
Cornell Cancer Prevention Center
in NewYork
Here’s something to consider as we move into our Mindful Listening and Sound
Massage session.
Read Slowly
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Sound Session HERE
Sound Massage Session
Get settled into a comfortable, fully reclined position for our sound massage session
Lights Out
Golden Glow breathing
Continuing to breath deeply, and to relax increasingly deeply
Allow yourself to be open to a sense of Wonder throughout your listening
experience
Being present & aware of any experiences and sensations – without judgement
Listening beyond the words, and sounds, into the Silences, and receiving the
essence of what’s here for you today.
WISDOM…
Journey Through My Soul hook
If this life were a dream,
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What would it mean?
What precious lessons, have you arranged to learn?
& What then is reality, other than a Whole and Brilliant, Stream of Light
That allows me to bask in knowing, because I have not forgotten,
Along with knowledge, comes a responsibility to share.
…
Humm, wisdom
1. Bar chimes, 2. Bell x3 > Bells > Bell + Bodhi 3. Bowls 4. Silence 5. tingshas
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REF…
• https://academic.oup.com/cercor/article/22/12/2769/304366 Oxford research actively neuroimaging brain during
intense musically invoked emotional response
• http://singingbowlmusic.blogspot.com/2012/09/history-and-use-of-crystal-singing-bowls.html
• https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2016/10/19/498507367/seeing-the-reality-of-atoms-and-molecules
• http://cymatica.com/2012/07/25/new-cymatics-exhibit-at-the-smithsonian/
• http://www.cymascope.com/cyma_research/history.html
• Special Thanks to MasterMind Meditation Studio and to a friend at Brain Performance Institute for helping me check
the brain science!
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