On this particular day, the administrator of the hospital came running into the room and asked me when I would be finished with the current treatment. I happened to be just cleaning up so I told her that I would be available in about 15 minutes. “Oh good”, she said. “The Emergency Room is total chaos and I was wondering what would happen if you just brought your harp down and started playing some calming music.”
I told her I would be down as soon as I finished cleaning up and proceeded to do so. I took my harp and headed towards the Emergency Room and as I got closer, I could hear the noise of the chaos she had described. There were kids running around, people crying and yelling, and nurses trying to get people’s attention. It was a real mess!
I sat down and began to play some calming music on the harp and at first no one even noticed, it was just another noise in the tumult. Within 15 minutes however, things really began to change. The noise level diminished markedly. The kids stopped running around. When people talked to each other, they used softer voices and slower cadence. The nurses didn’t have to speak as loud to get the person’s attention they were seeking. Everything changed.
The administrator came in a few minutes later to check on the progress and had the most amazed look on her face. “It worked!” was all she could say.
The effects of the harp music that day was a clear example of the principal of entrainment. The chaos that was being exhibited was a result of many different rhythms being manifest at the same time. As the harp played in a slower, more pronounced rhythm, the other rhythms began to entrain into the rhythm of the music. Once the slower rhythm was established, the chaos disappeared.
I receive many emails from people who tell me that they were not able to sleep well until they started listening to my harp music. This is another form of entrainment. The soft sounds of the music and the slow rhythm all work together to help the brain slow down into a range where sleep takes over. This is one of the positive effects of music entrainment.
If you find yourself in an agitated state or mood, you might consider bringing some calming music into your circumstances. I believe that you will find this to be an excellent tool to help bring the chaos of life into control and live in a more peaceful thriving place.