Celebrities who are into Music and Sound Therapy

Here's a list of famous people who use and are great supporters to Music Therapy!

Ben Folds, the musician behind Ben Folds Five, is a member of the distinguished Artist Committee for Americans for The Arts, Folds is a leading outspoken advocate for music therapy and music education, and recently participated in a special conference at Sundance Resort that explored how music and art therapy can help a nation’s military veterans.

Joey Fatone of N'SYNC established the The Fatone Family Foundation, which uses a Healing Harmony Music Therapy Program that is making a difference in the lives of the patients at the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando, Florida.

Mickey Hart, the former drummer for the Grateful Dead, has connected with the American Music Therapy Association in the past. In fact, in the film “The Music Never Stopped,” the Grateful Dead played an important role in the plot surrounding the main character.

Did you know that he had an album collaboration with the Universe? (*wink)

His new album, called "Mysterium Tremendum" explores the cosmic sounds of the universe, using electromagnetic radiation from other planets and stars, and made them audible through the process of sonification.

Check it out HERE!

Do you have tinnitus? Apparently, these famous people do! 

Did you know that Barbra Streisand suffers from tinnitus? And that Beethoven had also heard these constant whistles and buzz noises all throughout his life? Even Will.i.am. hears beeping sounds everyday, which means he has never really heard utter silence.

The effects of having tinnitus can actually affect a person's behavior and personality. Beethoven was known for his awful temperament, and Streisand has had her bouts of bad temper, blaming her tinnitus. Surprisingly, tinnitus can lead to depression, and the causes have been linked to thyroid conditions, tumors and anemia.

There is such a thing as Tinnitus Retraining Therapy, or TRT, which is similar to behavioral therapy but involves more relaxation techniques. TRT also uses counseling and sound therapy to help in the coping process. It doesn't necessarily mean that these are cures to the condition, but these types of therapies aim to help the individual become less focused on the ringing that they hear, creating a good distraction.

Other alternatives to helping people cope with tinnitus is listening to white noise or the soothing sounds of rain or the crashing of waves upon the shore. 

So what is Music Therapy?

Music Therapy is an established healthcare profession that uses music to address physical, emotional, cognitive, social and spiritual needs of individuals of all ages. Music therapy improves the quality of life for persons who are well and meets the needs of children and adults with disabilities or illnesses.

Music therapy is an allied health profession and one of the expressive therapies, consisting of a process in which a music therapist uses music and all of its facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—to help clients improve their physical and mental health. Music therapists primarily help clients improve their health in several domains, such as cognitive functioning, motor skills, emotional development, social skills, and quality of life, by using music experiences such as free improvisation, singing, and listening to, discussing, and moving to music to achieve treatment goals. It has a wide qualitative and quantitative research literature base and incorporates clinical therapy, psychotherapy, biomusicology, musical acoustics, music theory, psychoacoustics, embodied music cognition, aesthetics of music, sensory integration, and comparative musicology. Referrals to music therapy services may be made by other health care professionals such as physicians, psychologists, physical therapists, and occupational therapists. Clients can also choose to pursue music therapy services without a referral (i.e., self-referral).

Music therapists are found in nearly every area of the helping professions. Some commonly found practices include developmental work (communication, motor skills, etc.) with individuals with special needs, songwriting and listening in reminiscence/orientation work with the elderly, processing and relaxation work, and rhythmic entrainment for physical rehabilitation in stroke victims. Music therapy is also used in some medical hospitals, cancer centers, schools, alcohol and drug recovery programs, psychiatric hospitals, and correctional facilities.

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