Psychological approach through music to enable the people with special needs Dr. Saji. S Lecturer in Music Government College for Women Thiruvananthapuram.

Psychological approachthrough music

to enablethe people with special needs

Dr. Saji. SLecturer in Music

Government College for WomenThiruvananthapuram

University of KeralaIndia

16-Mar-10 Rehab Dubai 2010 2

My sincere gratitude to

H.H.Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum

The Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance of theUAE and President of Dubai Health Authority

and to

Rehab Dubai 2010

For giving me this prestigious opportunity to present mySubject and its possibilities in bringing solace for the people with

Special needs and challenges.

Psychological approach through music to enable people with special needs

16-Mar-10 Rehab Dubai 2010 3Rehab Dubai 2010 3

♫ The state of health is the balanced flow of energy (Prana) through all the energy circuits of the mind and body

♫ When this flow gets interrupted, by interfering with laws of Nature, the body opposes it, which we call as discomfort or disease

♫ Lost harmony and rhythm of the body and mind are possible to be reinstated by the power of 'sound‘, using Its integrating quality.

♫ Music purifies and harmonize the fields of body energy and bring them in alignment with their natural vibration. It is from that state, the transformation and healing begin in the most natural way.


Music & Health


♫ Music is a collection of vibrations.

♫ Our body is a pool of energy components. Each part, every organ is a symphony of sound, energy and frequencies.

♫ Every organ would resonate at its own natural frequency which determines its healthy state.

♫ The vibrational power of music is said to remove the blockages in the veins, naadis … and progressively tune the organs to vibrate at resonance.


Music and influence on body


♫ Complex mathematical order

– patterns in rhythm and pitch, character contrast and melodic variations.

– order causes the brain to release brain chemicals such as Melatonin & Serotonin letting the body and mind function better when listening to these logical compositions

♫ Poetry and literature rely on rational transport to inspire an emotion because they are mediated from words….

♫ Music skips that step and crosses right to our emotions.


Music & Influence on mind


♫ One need not be trained or talented to become influenced by music.

♫ Human brain is very receptive to repetitive patterns and the main characteristic of music is its repetitiveness. This explains that everyone is musical by nature.

♫ There are 5 different levels of experiencing Music.

1. Hearing – entertainment and relaxation of mind2. Listening – helps develop concentration and patience3. Voice tuning – easier way to relaxation (humming with a song

running in the background)4. Singing – benefits of music in totality5. Composition – helps cure people with disabilities


Music is for everyone…


♫ Music composition is a technique given to cure people with disabilities. The act of composition would clear out the mental blockage as the emotions and the disturbing thoughts would flow out as verses and free their mind.

So this Power of music can be used to give comfort for the peoplewith Special needs.

Raga Therapy in Indian Classical Music is based on Compositionswhich hence has tremendous therapeutic value if properly adopted.

Music and Cure




Ragas and Therapeutic value…

♫ Ancient Indian music has devised a special therapy based on the ragas.

♫ Raga is mode, created with notes, which evoke different moods and directly appealing to the sense.

♫ According to ancient Indian treatises, the seven svaras control the seven constitutions of the body.

♫ It is believed that a person who sings/listens a raga bound to the raga specifications (lakshanas) and with purity in pitch (swara suddhi) will have complete control on the corresponding constitution.


The ragas Ahirbhairav and Todi can help control hyper tension

Carnatic ragas like Punnagavarali, Sahana can help control anger and bring down violence within oneself

Kapi, bhairavi, thodi, asaveri enjoyable during afternoon.

Raga neelambari is the lullaby raga that can put any disturbed mind to sleep.

Such is the effect of the raga on mind. Every raga has its own special and unique feature that would leave an imprint of the emotion and feeling associated with it.

Not only psychological, but the somatic or physiological impact of ragas have come to light in recent research.

Saranga is known to cure all seasonal fevers and would bring in tranquility and relief.


Ragas and Therapeutic value


♫ Aid for Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

Usually, the affected children have much trouble in carrying

out various activities. With the aid of appropriate ragas their concentration level can be increased and can make them to improve the control over their actions. Musical rhythms help

to better co-ordinate the actions.

♫ Music with strong beats will cause the brain to resonate to the same rhythm

♫ Slow beats help calm brainwaves (associated with hypnotic state)

♫ Rhythmic therapy has improved cognitive function in elderly people by increasing blood flow.

MUSIC COULD BE THE FUTURE OF THERAPY !!!


Example of cure possibilities



My experience

♫ Effect of Music was studied on 5 disabled children and observed encouraging results. (These children were selected based on specific attributes in their behavior from a rehabilitation school)

One child who was very aggressive and self injurious was found responding to music in a positive manner. He became calm andattentive.

Another child with repeated body movements and producing unusualsounds became attentive to particular music. He became silent andcalm whenever the music is played out to him.

Three children who had problems with coordination of activities could clap to the rhythm of music. This shows that the music can help them in learning if physical activities are taught to the rhythm.


♫ Simple iterative musical rhythms with low pitched swaras, are capable of relaxation, as observed with the alpha-levels of the brain waves. They may also lead to favourable hormonal changes in the system.

♫ There is a growing awareness that ragas could complement or even be a safe alternative for many medical interventions.

♫ For this purpose, it is necessary that exponents in Indian ragas join experts in medicine to help evolve a scientific system of raga therapy for the various illnesses of modern times.


Possibilities in Medical field


♫ The influence of Music on mind and the power of music to integrate the body and mind can be effectively utilized for the enabling of people withSpecial needs.

♫ The healing effect of music needs intense research in coordination with experts in medical field and music.


Conclusion


References

• Study reports in internet on music therapy.

• Dr. Saji. S – ‘Vakra Ragas of South Indian Music’ – Thesis submitted to Sree Sankara University of Sanskrit in the year 2007.

• Dr. Saji. S – ‘The Relation Between Melody, Text and Tala In The Compositions Set To Desadi Tala – Nadamritham Vol. 3 –The journal of Music by University of Kerala.

• Dr. Saji. S – ‘The Relation Between Melody, Text and Tala In Rupaka Tala’ – Nadamritham Vol. 4 –The journal of Music by University of Kerala.

• Dr. Saji. S – ‘References About Tana in Lakshana Grandhas’ – Nadamritham Vol. 4 –The journal of Music by University of Kerala.

• Manorama Sharma – ‘Special Education Music Therapy’ – APH Publishing Corporation 5, Ansari Road, Darya Ganj New Delhi-110 002.


Thank you


Questions?

Psychological approach through music to enable the people with special needs Dr. Saji. S Lecturer in Music Government College for Women Thiruvananthapuram.

Documents

music composition

benefits of music

music skips

special needs music

special needs slide

rehab dubai

indian classical music

vibrational power of