Sound healing uses music, sound, and vibration to treat ailments both emotional, psychological and physical. There are multi-cultural beliefs that humans are vibratory beings and sound can be used to cure vibratory blockages that manifest as emotional and physical issues.
history & examples:
Music and sound healing have been used all throughout the world, found in Australia, Asia, Persia, India, the Americas, Egypt and Greece.
Greek physicians of the ancient world used “flutes, lyres and zitters to heal their patients.” (Meymandi, 2009)
The earliest use of music therapy comes from the Aboriginals of Australia who have used the didgeridoo for nearly 40,000 years to cure ailments and include the dreamtime songs.
The Maori of New Zealand practice “sacred sound science”, known as ihirangaranga, using vibration to “facilitate healing and transformation in accord with the flow of life.” (Rostenberg 2020)
sound healing is found globally throughout indigenous societies.
applications:
Tibetan singing bowls, tuning forks, and harmoniums but sound healing can be created with any form of sound-making be it that the result provides the desired effect. Other methods of sound therapy can include drumming rhythmically, singing/chanting/humming, listening to binaural beats or receiving vibro-acoustic therapy. The calming, positive effects are linked to vagus nerve activation and altered brain wave states which assist in promoting the feeling of well-being.
why in spectrasomatics?
accessible & simple
Sound Healing in Spectrasomatics: Indian vs European Classical Music
Classical music
Certain Spectrasomatics experiments use selections from the last 600 years of European classical music. Classical music acts as an emotional soundscape, which is an intentional choice as it is opposite of the meditative drone of the shruti box.
Classical music was not originally used with the intention of sound healing, with the possible exception of early Gregorian chants, rather classical music was entertainment for the wealthy that has current scientific studies backing its effectiveness in mood enhancement.
scientific examples:
Slower classical music has been shown to enhance heart rate variability, showing potential for therapeutic purposes (Pepplinkhuizen, 2026).
Listening to classical music has been shown to heighten focus in participants as well as increasing the production of dopamine. (Pauwels, 2014, 405 )
Studies prove that music and sound directly affect the emotional centers of the brain, activating the amygdala, nucleus accumbens and the hippocampus. (Pauwels, 2014, 404 )
USE IN SPECTRASOMATICS:
Within the Spectrasomatics art-experiments, the shruti box is used for the instructional video art pieces, whereas classical music is used to produce video performance art. Classical music was also used as the background for action painting and stream-of-consciousness experiments that resulted in paintings, drawings and sculptures.
THE SHRUTI BOX
The Indian subcontinent authors a venerable, complex system of sound for more than 2000 years, with examples of music, chanting and vibration used for healing found throughout society and within yogic scripture and tradition. Spectrasomatics focuses on the use of the instrument known as the shruti box, a newer instrument used for pitch reference through microtones from India which has found popularity in sound healing over the last 100 years. It is simple and accessible, and it promotes the possibility of the addition of vocal toning (singing).
USE IN SPECTRASOMATICS
In the art-experiments, the videos produced are considered "instructional video art" and use the shruti box. The shruti box assists the participant in entering a meditative state in the first part of the practice. Viewers who follow the instructional video art are encouraged to then use classical music to engage in intuitive, expressive movement.
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