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The Mozart Myth What I'm about to say may help you breathe a sigh of relief and help you feel better about yourself. It may also help you make more appropriate musical choices for yourself. Lately, we're being bombarded by a barrage of publicity and propaganda that manages to ignore a huge database for conflicting information and experience. This is of special interest to you as a likely card-carrying member of the "Highly Sensitive Person" population (See Elaine N. Aron's book of the same name). Setting the Record Straight For the past twenty-seven years, I've led workshops involving sound, awareness and our "human instrument." I've been on a bit of a crusade to raise the level of consciousness about how sound and music affect us. To that end, I've carried out research projects involving independent labs and clinics, and on-going participant-observer situations. One of the most common comments I hear from workshop attendees is that they thought something was the matter with them -- because they didn't react to sound stimuli the same way as many of their family or associates. In reality, many of these individuals are part of what is now being described as "the highly sensitive population." Indeed, they do respond differently than many other people. But you'd be amazed at how large a minority we are. I've already heard from a number of people who have noticed that "Mozart makes them dumber"! Unlike the hype heralded as "the Mozart Effect," a term coined by Alfred Tomatis, for many individuals, listening to Mozart's music, or much Baroque, for that matter, causes "brain freeze." It literally jams the circuits. The problem with some of the recent hoopla concerning this particular choice of music is that it doesn't take into account the different learning inclinations that different people have. One Size Does Not Fit All Ever since I first started researching the literature in this field, studies always demonstrated that, when it comes to classical music, one size does not fit all! That was part of my personal impetus to compose music that could work to evoke the relaxation response for people like you. So it is not without a certain degree of déjà vu and disappointment that I see that several recent books and recordings have literally set the clock back -- at the same time as they claim to set it forward. By ignoring data that doesn't fit into their hypothesis, they can have a neater book proposal, but they are not presenting the whole truth as they say they are. Granted, I don't know what the original manuscript was, or whether an editor might have omitted "inharmonious facts." (I recall being told by the author of Superlearning back in the 1970s that her editor wouldn't allow them to write about the success that they had with Spectrum Suite [Ed. Note: one of Steven's early titles] -- because it didn't conform to their hypothesis). Not All Music is Created Equal A little information can be a dangerous thing. We've heard that proverb for ages. Well, it's truer now than ever. I even heard John Tesh give a superficial summary on a recent Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The problem is that if you merely say, "Music is good for your health," you ignore the fact that not all music is created equal. I refer you to Dr. John Diamond's classic book, Your Body Doesn't Lie. He presents an effective strategy for determining for yourself, using behavioral kinesiology, the relative benefits of different recordings of the same musical selection. You would be amazed to find that many recorded versions of a piece by Mozart, for instance, had a decidedly dysfunctional effect on your life energy. On the other hand, a properly performed recording would indeed be beneficial. There are many factors to be considered, which I've discussed in these pages in the past (and will summarize in my forthcoming book, Fundamentally Sound). Suffice it to say that you shouldn't take my word for it, or Don Campbell's, or Andrew Weil's. Pay attention to your own feelings . . . and take responsibility for your own "response-ability." What I mean by that is that before composers began composing music specifically for healing and to encourage "sound health", classical music was pretty much the only field of possibility. But as New Age music came into existence, there was finally "an anti-frantic alternative" to the wonderful music of a bygone era . . . a new music attuned to the need of our 20th century world. Not All Research is Created Equal When I see advertisements attempting to position classical music as "the only music suitable for healing" or alleging the "moral superiority" of acoustic instruments over electric ones, I know that the writers are disregarding basic physics and twenty-five years of research. Most likely it's the sales and marketing department running the show. It's like the tail wagging the dog. I'm all for inclusivity, and choosing what works best – not choosing a particular sound track just because you already own the copyright and then trying to convince the public with hype and propaganda. If I sound like I have a charge about this, you're right. I could not deny my feelings, especially since I know what I know to be true. Also in the news this month comes word that our President is now wearing hearing aids. Blame it on the roar of the crowds, helicopters, cannon, or sitting too close to the speakers at rock concerts, but Bill Clinton is a victim of hearing loss. According to the National Institute for Deafness, twenty-seven million Americans suffer from some form of hearing loss. (I know: they're the ones setting the high volume levels in movies and restaurants.) Ten million of these individuals could benefit from some sort of hearing aid, but only half of them will wear them. If you're having a hard time distinguishing "map" from "mat", you're a candidate. It can make for some very humorous misunderstandings, but after a while, the joke wears off and then it can really get in the way of clear communication. Be good to yourself. The ears you save may be your own! Until next time, stay tuned!
Copyright © 1997, Steven Halpern
Steven Halpern has earned a
reputation as one of the most influential New Age recording artists. With over three million
units sold, he celebrates his 20th anniversary by revisiting his World/Jazz roots with
Afro-Desia, also featuring Suru, medicine man and healer, and a special guest appearance
of Jai Uttal. For free in-store play, contact your sales rep or: Steven Halpern's Inner
Peace Music®, phone: 1-800-909-0707 / fax 415-485-1312 /
e-mail: innerpeacemusic@innerpeacemusic.
com. Visit his World Wide Web site at
www.stevenhalpern.com.
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