Faculty: Recent Research
Making an Impact through Making Music
"Making Music and Wellness Project" results in smiles, laughter, energy
and warmth
Music is considered a universal language that connects people of all
ages.
It can alleviate stress, boost moods and even contribute to healthier
emotional and physical well-being.
This improvement in quality of life was demonstrated through a study
designed to analyze the physical and psychological benefits of active
participation in music making for healthy Americans over age 65. The
study, called "The Music Making and Wellness Project," was conducted over
a five-year span, from 1995-2000, by Dr. Frederick Tims, MSU professor of
music therapy and associate director of graduate studies. He coordinated
a team of internationally known experts in the fields of medicine,
biochemistry, aging, psychology, psychiatry, music therapy and keyboard
pedagogy. Midori Koga, MSU assistant professor piano and director of
piano pedagogy was also part of the team.
Tims receives AMTA Lifetime Achievement Award
Frederick (Ted) Tims, professor and chair of music therapy, and associate
director for graduate studies at Michigan State University's School of
Music, was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Music
Therapy Association (AMTA).
Tims received the award at the AMTA annual conference in October 2001.
Presented annually, the award recognizes lifelong contributions to the
profession of music therapy, and is the highest honor that the AMTA
bestows upon its members.
"Dr. Tims has served the profession of music therapy with great
distinction for many years as a renown educator, researcher and leader in
the former National Association for Music Therapy. He is most deserving
of this recognition," stated American Music Therapy Association President,
Mary Adamek, Ph.D., MT-BC.
Tims is currently engaged in brain mapping research with the Department of
Radiology at MSU.
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Conducting the Study
The study was conducted at several Fletcher Music Centers in Florida,
which offered free, lifetime music lessons to seniors, along with a group
of retirees in the Metropolitan Area of Detroit. Fletcher Music Centers
owner, Robert Fletcher, had received numerous letters of gratitude from
customers over the years expressing an improvement in their physical and
emotional well-being since starting the lessons. This, in turn, made
these customers the ideal candidates to study, in that these results
matched the goals of the Music Making and Wellness Project.
The main phase of the study consisted of 50 students who participated in
organ lessons and 50 who did not. The non-participants served as the
control group, which enabled researchers to compare identical
psychological surveys and blood tests to those who participated, and to
observe if the effects of music were improving their health.
Results
The results of the study indicated that music had a significant and
positive effect on the lifestyle of seniors, contributing to better
physical and emotional health. Participants experienced an increase in
relaxation and general sense of emotional well-being, along with a
decrease in anxiety, depression and perception of loneliness, known to
suppress the human immune function.
In addition, the students had a 90 percent increase in levels of Human
Growth Hormone (hGH), which many scientists believe is responsible for the
aches and pains of old age, as its natural production decreases with
aging.
"The dissemination of information and application of knowledge stage of
the Wellness study is still being continued in such corporations as
Yamaha, Technics, and Lowry Organ Company," said Tims.
The same research team had previously conducted a Federally funded study
measuring the effects of music making on the biology and behavior of
Alzheimer's patients from 1993-1995, rendering similar results. The
positive findings from this study gave way to the idea of doing the same
study on healthy senior citizens citizens in hopes of achieving similar
results.
"What we found is a piece of the puzzle explaining the mechanisms of how
music can be beneficial," said Tims. "I hope to see my own profession
develop better models explaining how music therapy works, so we can begin
to explain the 'whys' of music therapy and better use it to improve
quality of life of all people."
An article on the study, entitled "The Music Making and Wellness Project,"
written by Koga and Tims, was selected as the 2001 American Music Teacher
Article of the Year. It appeared in the October/November 2001 issue of
American Music Teacher magazine.
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