Music and Altered States: Consciousness, Transcendence, Therapy and Addictions

by David Aldridge (Editor), Jörg Fachner (Editor)

This international collection examines the opportunities for using music-induced states of altered consciousness to promote physical and mental healing, treat substance dependence, and in spiritual and palliative care. The contributors describe the successful use of altered states and their therapeutic potential, providing examples from different cultures and clinical, therapeutic and spiritual settings. Their observations cover a wide range of music types capable of inducing altered states, including polyrhythmic music, monotonous drumming, Western pop, and Arab musical schemata, complemented by theoretical and clinical approaches to applications in music therapy. This book will be a useful reference for practising music therapists, musicologists, and ethnomusicologists, students and academics in the field.

Genres: Music, Psychology

208 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2005

Reviews

[Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this book out from the library as a part of research I was doing for a school paper on drum circles and shamanism. Although I only used Chapter Four and Six as research material for my paper the book was interesting enough that I round up reading the whole thing cover-to-cover. Each chapter presents a different scientific study or research paper on the benefits of music. Many of these studies are based on empirical data. Each chapter presented a different subject but each flowed well into one another. Plenty of food for thought and valuable content for my own research paper. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the healing affects of music on the human body, mind, and spirit.

[TyLean · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly quick read. This is a collection from a number of contributors from varied backgrounds and the content from one chapter to the next varies considerably but is all relevant and interesting.