In one of our weekly practice session, Albert mentioned about the new trend of Symphony Orchestra — music healing and discussion followed to expand our Chamber Ensemble’s activities beyond the weekly practices.
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There is an excellent web site: “Music Mind Spirit” (MMS).
Music Mind Spirit is a charitable trust set up to:
- Research and explore – in collaboration with leading scientists, philosophers, psychologists and medical and management experts – the neurological, scientific and ethical basis of music, in order to understand its underlying effect on cognitive, social and subjective behavior.
- Promote and educate the public in the art and science of music in relation to their work, lives and experiences.
MMS site reported their “Bach Project” which is very interesting. The analysis on Bach’s solo violin sonatas and partitas is worth reading. I have read Bach’s “Art of Fugue” has been demystified by David Peat.
MMS site talked about music and science. It talked mainly music and mathematics. Actually, music and physics are closely related, e.g., the wave equation and the followed Maxwell electromagnetic theory are originated by the analysis of violin string motions (Taylor, Euler and Bernoulli). Then, MIT has a research group – “hyper instruments” that work on projects such as “music, mind and health”, “music visualization” and “hyper violin”, etc. that relates music and science.
MMS also has projects on helping “Alzheimer’s” patients using music healing techniques. The “music healing” practices just started in Taiwan with less than 20 practitioners. Also, their “Song Trees” and “Sound Bites” are designed toward children’s music education. The “Music Learning” talked about “Mozart Effect” – the benefit effects of Mozart music on child development, but left the readers to make their own conclusions.
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NTU Alumni Chamber Ensemble consists of “engineers”, “scientists”, “psychologists”, “medical and management experts” and we might have “philosophers” and “educators” among us. Therefore, our intents are to include activities relate to “music education”, “music and science”, and “music therapy” beyond our weekly practices and concert performances.
Currently, we are researching on “aromatherapy” and “music therapy” so that we can counsel/treat those suffering “depression”, “cancer”, and “dementia”.
References:
1. The Mastery of Music by Barry Green
2. The Inner Game of Music by Barry Green
3. Violin Dreams by Arnold Steinhardt (a chapter on Chaconne)
4. This is Your Brain on Music by Daniel J. Levitin (迷戀音樂的腦)
5. 音樂治療十四講 by 吳幸如、黃創華
6. 音樂腦 by 茂木健一郎
7. 用音樂打造學習力 by 李明倩
8. 聆聽自己、聽懂別人 by 李明倩
9. The Soloist by Steve Lopez
10. Zen and the Brain by James H. Austin, M.D.
11. The New Music Therapist’s Handbook by Hanser, Suzanne B.
12. Aromatherapy and Music Therapy