Written by Bonnie Foster

Having grown up in a musical family , I can feel music pulsing through my veins. Music is part of me and it plays a large role in my happiness and wellbeing. I’ve been involved in live music for weddings and special events since I was a child and I’ve seen the pure elation people feel when listening and dancing to exceptional live music. Even as a kid, I knew there had to be something healing and transformative about music. In the last 15 years, there have been several studies that show music may calm anxiety, reduce depression, ease pain, and boost the immune system. Learn some of the health benefits of listening to music below.

Studies are finding that music is effective for relaxation and stress management. From personal experience, you may feel like music can have a profound effect on your emotions and mood. Faster music may make you feel more alert. Upbeat music may make you feel more optimistic. A slower tempo may make you feel more relaxed.

Research indicates that listening to music impacted the psychobiological stress system. Listening to music prior to a standardized stressor predominantly affected the autonomic nervous system (in terms of a faster recovery), and to a lesser degree the endocrine and psychological stress response, according to a 2013 study published in The National Center for Biotechnology Information.

Researchers have also shown that watching while listening to live music being performed could help reduce people's levels of stress hormones, including the steroid cortisol (your “fight-or-flight” hormone). Daisy Fancourt and Aaron Williamon, researchers from Imperial College London, wrote in the journal Public Health about a study in which volunteers had their stress hormones level tested with a saliva sample before a concert performance, and then 60 minutes later during intermission. In an attempt to eliminate variables, they tested at two concerts, both which played the exact same music and went for the same length of time. The team found that, across the board, levels of the stress hormones cortisol and cortisone had decreased during both concerts.

According to a 2013 review in the journal Brain Behavior and Immunity, the emotional and psychological effects of listening to music have a direct impact on biomarkers and hormone levels. Immunoglobulin A, which plays a crucial role in immune functions, was cited as being “particularly responsive to music.”

"We think the pleasant state that can be induced by music leads to special physiological changes which eventually lead to stress reduction or direct immune enhancement," says Dr. Ronny Enk of the Max Planck Institute in a study with Sussex University conducted in 2008 on the impact of music on the immune system. 

In this study, 300 participants listened to either 50 minutes of upbeat dance music or, in the control group, a "random collection of tones." The participants who listened to dance music saw a significant decline in their levels of cortisol in comparison with the control group, while their levels of antibody immunoglobulin A, a vital aspect of the immune system, increased.

Research has also found that music therapy, an intervention that involves regular meetings with a qualified music therapist, may help in improving mood through emotional expression. An authoritative review of research performed between 1994 and 1999 reported that in four trials, music therapy reduced symptoms of depression, while a fifth study found no benefit.

According to Harvard Health, music therapy can also help to minimize pain perception , and has assisted both patients with "intense short-term pain" and patients with chronic pain. Recipients of special music therapy needed less medication to manage their pain, felt more in control of their pain, and found some relief from pain-related depression.

My event music and entertainment company, which consists of a collaborative and unified team of talented, creative musical artists, is all about making memorable, musical experiences that uplift guests. I’ve seen the healing power of music first-hand and am beyond blessed to have a career that allows me to think about, study and share music with others who appreciate the highest quality music as much as I do.

While we are fascinated by the science of music on health, we also treat our musical services as a “science.” We call it the “Science of Celebration,” which is a term coined by my musical mentors and trailblazing parents, Marin & Wayne Foster , which consists of a proprietary formula that ensures a seamless, continuous flowing, multi-generational, guest-pleasing, unforgettable, elegant and unique live musical experience.

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