What makes sound and music so extraordinary? It could be the exquisite combination of vibration, resonance and frequency. Everything is in vibration—including the trees, our food, cars, the earth—everything is energy. Frequency and density go hand in hand. For example, the higher the frequency, the less dense and, quite possibly, the purer the matter; the reverse is also true. A state of bliss is a much higher vibration than anger. Since bliss and love carry much less resistance, they can naturally float above the lower vibrational emotions like anger and fear. What is it about music and sound that possess this extraordinary power to move us, give us chills, assist us in our path to wholeness and touch the divine?

Modern medicine can now measure, and thus confirm, the effectiveness of sound as a means to promote healing. Sound is a type of energy medicine that has the ability to move and clear energy in our physical, spiritual and emotional bodies; it can create the sacred space in which the body can heal from pain, stress disorders, depression, emotional roller coasters and more. The late Mitchell Gaynor, MD, a New York oncologist and clinical professor of medicine at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, used sound healing practices since the early 1990s. “Sound enters the healing equation from several directions: it may alter cellular functions through energetic effects; it may entrain biological systems to function more homeostatically; it may calm the mind and therefore the body; or it may have emotional effects, which influence neurotransmitters and neuropeptides, which in turn help to regulate the immune system—the healer within,” he said.

Notice feelings when listening to different types of music. Become aware of the way the body reacts to Bach or Mozart, pop, rock, rap or even jazz. Does the body relax or constrict? How does the mind respond to the musical or sound stimuli? Our organs, energy centers and auric field resonate to their own frequency; because our body it responds in accordance to our innermost thoughts and feelings. When those frequencies become out of balance or out of tune, they often reflect in our physical and mental health and well-being. When we are in a state of alignment with ourselves or our highest truth, and in a state of flow, our physical body reflects that as a state of health, vibrancy and overall wellness. 

According to sound healing pioneer Jonathan Goldman, “When we are in a state of health, we’re like an extraordinary orchestra that’s playing a wonderful symphony of the self. But what happens if the second violin player loses her sheet music? She begins to play out of tune, and pretty soon the entire string section sounds bad. Pretty soon, in fact, the entire orchestra is off. This is a metaphor for disease.”

If we consider lyrics, they are not only words, but words with the power of emotion behind them. Words have a specific vibration, as does each letter. The work of the Japanese researcher Dr. Masuru Emoto and his “Messages from Water” support this theory. In his work, the team attached words to glasses filled with water and froze them. Pictures of the water molecules were taken before and after the glasses were frozen. The findings were amazing. The water molecules in the glass with the words love and gratitude attached were shaped like the most beautiful symmetrical snowflakes. The water glasses containing words such as hate and anger housed crystals that were conceivably unrecognizable malformations with not a single ounce of symmetry. 

Every thought and every word is, in itself, a facet of sound and has an exact pitch, an exact frequency (or a cycle) that resonates with perfection. A blade of grass, for example, resonates at the frequency 528Hz (or cycles), the same frequency that is used for DNA repair by scientists, which also corresponds to a pitch. Sounds that are of optimal benefit to us most likely have a healing influence upon the body because they influence the geometric patterns and organization of cells and living systems.

The beauty of sound is that it is powerful and multifaceted and yet simple. Sound can be used to heal on a deep cellular level. Vibrational and sound healing techniques are widely offered and effective through the concept of resonance and entrainment. During our waking state, the normal frequency of our brain waves is that of beta. Sound tools entrain the brain to move into the deeper alpha and theta brain wave frequencies, which are the frequencies that induce deep meditative and peaceful states, clarity of mind and intuition. 

Entrainment is when the dominant vibration of one tone or frequency changes the less dominant one. Sound or sonic entrainment has been used by medicine men and women, and shamans from different cultures since prehistoric days. The ability to create altered states of consciousness through drumming, chanting and music is probably as old as music itself. According to Jeanne Achterberg in her book, Imagery in Healing, that analysis of shamanic drumming encompasses a frequency range of from 0.8 to 5.0Hz or cycles per second, which she refers to as “theta driving capacity.” Tibetan Singing bowls, bells (tingshas), Peruvian whistles and gongs have been used by their respective cultures for centuries. One of the most powerful, yet sometimes overlooked instruments for healing is the human voice. 

The voice is most powerful because it can transmit intention far more directly than through an instrument alone. It is a healing tool that is divinely individual and exists within us all. The human voice contains tones and overtones that can work the physical and subtle energy bodies. Electronic instruments and machines do not have the full spectrum of harmonics, and are therefore limited in their therapeutic potential. Toning, chanting and vocalizing mantras are ways to use the voice in a group or alone. Group chanting has been described as life-changing or spiritually profound by those experiencing it for the first time. Even in cases where there has been no personal participation, the energies raised during chanting will affect all present. Through the regular use of sound plus intention, we have the ability to shift the vibration, thus creating a path to wholeness for ourselves and on our planet. 

“In the beginning there was the Word.” The “Word” quite clearly refers to sound as it is the primal energy which is the “God-force” or creative force of the universe. In the Hindu tradition, the word “aim” or “om” was the sound that initiated the Creation. 

And the big bang theory? According to scientists and physicists, it was actually an extraordinarily deep subatomic note, much slower and deeper than anything that could be heard. No matter what school of thought we resonate with, we have come full circle. Everything is vibration. Everything is sound. So let us raise our vibration and sound together, and let us sing with and for our New Earth.

Jennifer Aurelia, MA, is an award-winning new age recording artist, composer and singer for over 20 years. She is the founder and director of Newtown-based SOUND (A Center for Music, Creative Arts & Mindfulness). Her fourth album, “SEASONS”, will be released in spring 2018. Connect at SOUNDCenterArts.com and AureliasLight.com.