Music Therapy
1988, Vol. 7, No. 1, 15-27
Elements of Pain and Music:
The Aio Connection1,2
CHARLES T. EAGLE
HEAD, DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC THERAPY: MEDICINE AND HEALTH
SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY
JOHN M. HARSH
GRADUATE STUDENT, DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC THERAPY: MEDICINE AND HEALTH
SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY
Origin of the Aio Connection
According to the entry in Funk and Wagnall’s New Standard Dictionary
(1965), the word “anesthetic” is derived from the Greek term
aisthanomai, meaning “to perceive.” The term “aesthetic’‘-seemingly
the opposite of anesthetic-stems from aisthetikos, a Greek term mean­
ing “perceptive,” which also stems from aisthanomai.Most significantly,
aisthanomai, from which both anesthetic and aesthetic originate, is, in
turn, derived from the Greek root aio, meaning “to hear.“3
Why did the ancient Greeks use aio-“to hear”--as opposed to some
other perceptual word involving other human senses, such as sight,
taste, smell, or tactile touch, to indicate the act of perceiving?
Apparently, this choice of words indicates the Greeks’ belief of the over­
powering sense of hearing, especially the hearing of music (Lang, 1941;
Murchie, 1961; Wright, 1969). Results from modern scientific studies
of sensory deprivation tend to confirm this ancient wisdom. Even
‘The genesis of this paper was developed through requirements far and processes of an
academic course in music psychology at Southern Methodist University during the Spring
Semester of 1987.The authors particularly thank members of that class for inspiring and
supporting this work. The authors also thank each other for their mutual trust and respect,
motivation and illumination which has led to this collegial endeavor.
*For his critique of this work, the authors are indebted to C. Thomas Eagle III, who is
a professional writer and editor.
3A slightly different line of philological development may be found in Webster’s(1963).
where both “aesthetic” and “anesthetic” are traced to aesthetos-"‘sensible” or “percep­
tible”-then to aisthenesthai-to “perceive” or “feel.” The reader is referred to the Webster’s
(1963)definition of “audible,” where aisthenesthaiis traced to aiein-“to hear.” To debate
the proficiency of Webster’s(1963)linguists’ interpretations of the ancient Greek language
to that of Funk and WagnaIl’s(1965)would deviate from the purpose of this paper. The
point is that, regardless of how one spells the word (linguist or not), the ancient Greek
term meaning “to hear” (aio or aiein) evolved into other Greek words meaning “to
perceive” or “perceptive,” and hence, into our modern-day words “aesthetic” and
“anesthetic.”
15
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Eagle, Harsh
without experimental devices and evidence, observational logic dictates
that we can close our eyes (sight), refrain from putting substances into
our mouths (taste), close our noses by breathing through our mouths
(smell), and lie or stand still (tactile touch). But we cannot as easily
close our ears. They remain constantly vigilant, even in sleep. This
aspect of vigilance-constant and acute attentiveness through hearing­
seems to have been considered the basic perceptual attribute of
humankind by the Greeks.
“To hear” (aio) is philologically, then, the root term from which the
English/Greek connotation of “beautiful” (aesthetic) or “not beautiful”
(anesthetic) derive. And the search for the beautiful is that which
initiates, illuminates, and animates both artistic and scientific endeavors.
Philosopher Augros and physicist Stanciu (1984) state unequivocally
that “beauty is a means of discovering scientific truth” (p. 38). The emi­
nent quantum physicist Heisenberg has been quoted as saying that
beauty “in exact science, no less than in the arts. .is the most impor­
tant source of illumination and clarity” (Augros & Stanciu, 1984,p. 39).
The primary standard for scientific truth is beauty, as exemplified in
the statement of physicist Dirac: “It is more important to have beauty
in one’s equations than to have them fit the experiment” (cited in Taylor,
1970,p. 38). Similarly, physician Dossey (1982) speaks to the aio and
aesthetics of medical therapy by saying that, “when medical models
embody beauty-the beauty of oneness and unity--and fit the experi­
ment, there is cause for delight” (p. 225).
These statements, in tandem with the aio concept, are reminiscent
of Apollo, the most Greek of all the Greek gods: He was “the god of
light, of order and clarity, of medicine, music, and prophecy”
(Vandenberg, 1982, p. 162). To these concepts, we must also add
Phythagoras’ scientific discovery of numerical relationships between
lengths of vibrating string, a discovery which gave rise to the musical
scale and, consequently, Western music.4 Consider also the Greek doc­
trine of ethos whose greatest proponent was Plato.5 According to this
integral belief of Greek society, the influence of music is profound, in
that people are decisively influenced by music in three ways:
1) It [music] can spur to action; it can lead to the strengthening
of the whole being, 2) just as it can undermine mental balance; and
finally, 3) it is capable of suspending entirely the normal willpower,
so as to render the doer unconscious of his acts. (Lang, 1941,p. 14)
Kayser (1970)states that “the balance of Western thought was destroyed when ‘touch’
and‘sight’werestressedto the detrimentof ‘hearing”’ (fromthe dust cover). Musi­
cian/art historian Kayser’s monumental theoretical work is based primarily and
predominantly an the research of Pythagoras.
5Attention is drawn to two significant works by musicologist McClain (1976, 1984): The
Myth of Invariance and The PyfhagoreanPlato. In them, the author interprets writings of
Plato vis-a-vis music and its influence, particularly on number and cosmology. Also, see
selected indexed portions of the writings of physicist Jones (1982)in Physics asMetaphor.
Elements of Pain and Music
17
This Apollonian concept of music medicine is exemplified in the
modem art-science of music therapy, or music medicine. In addition,
the current connotative use of the terms “new age” and “holism” sug­
gests revivification of Renaissance and ancient Greek attitudes and con­
cepts toward a unification of spirit, mind, and body. The aesthetic, or
beautiful, then, in the perception (aisthanomai)of music through its hear­
ing (aio), is inculcated in the spirit of humankind, which is the source
of universal energy micro­ and macrocosmically. Furthermore, this
energy is mediated by the mind6, with eventual impact on the body.7,8
Ultimately, artistic beauty scientifically applied, and scientific beauty
artistically applied, are that which heals. Basically, aesthetics heal.
Beauty heals. More completely, the beauty of music heals.
With this acute and constant awareness of the conceptual and
theoretical silent underpinning of the ancient Greek term “aesthetic,”
its derivations and meanings, we can single out the relationship be­
tween pain and music to illustrate the relationship between healing and
beauty. In order to comprehend how the intervention of beautiful
(aesthetic) music-through
the hearing (aio)-affects the perceived
(aisthanomai), we must begin with an understanding of pain and the
psychoneurological and psychoacoustical connections between pain and
music.
6In this context the mind is equated with the Creek will, as presented by musicologist
Lang (1941).For purposes of this paper, the mind is seen as the functioning of the brain.
‘In analogous, and perhaps literal, terms of and concepts from quantum physics, energy
(spirit) influences matter (body) or, at the very least, affects interchanges with each other,
due to the mediation and perception of the brain (mind), This notion is more than
analogous to physic&t/musician Einstein’s E = mc2,wherein “E” is energy, “m” is mat­
ter. and “=” is the mediator between E and m, with “P’ (chronos) being the time in
which the event occurs. The definition of music as being vibrations in harmonious pat­
terns and existing for the purpose of bridging materiality into spirituality through con­
ceptsfromquantumphysicsisbeautifullypresentedbymetaphysicist
Starcke(1973).In
thisregard,alsoseethewriting of physicistCharon(1983).Severalotherauthorshave
brieflybut perhapstentativelyexploredthe relationshipof musicwith concepts from
quantumphysics;theseincludephysicistsBohm (1980).Herbert (1985),and Wolf (1981),
as well as science writers Cole (1985)and Zukav (1919).The writings of Dossey (1982.1984)
are replete with topical references to artistic and aesthetic concepts in quantum physics­
particularly time-as they relate and apply to therapy, especially to medical practice.
‘Perceptionis centralto physicist/musician
Heisenberg’s
provenconceptof theUncer­
tainty Principle, which states that a thing exists or can be measured in a position or move­
ment:,dependingon themannerofhumanperception.Thisis oftencalledtheobserver
The indication from quantum physics-physics being the basic science-is that human
perception determines the quantum state of existence of a thing. This includes our bodies,
as is convincingly shown by physicist Wolf (1986) through his writing TheBodyQuan­
tum.Wolfstatesthat“quantumconsciousness
is theobservereffectin quantumphysics
[uncertaintyPrinciple]”and,therefore,“consciousness
[perception],
in itsquantumrole
astheobserver,altersthebody,enablingeachbodilyfunctionto occur” (p. xxv).The
implication is clear: As a perceptual phenomena, pain can be mediated through con­
scious attention or lackthereof,andmusiccanaffectperceptual
consciousness.
Conse­
quently,musiccanhavean effecton pain.
18
Eagle, Harsh
Parameters of Pain
Apparently, there is no nonpainful process of purification (Lewis,
1948). There are at least three reasons for this phenomenon. First, most
processes of purification involve intense factors such as heat, pressure,
and emotion that somehow alter the nature of that which is being
purified. Second, purifying leads to pain which comes into existence
as a warning system. And, third, the warning signals let us know that
we are injured and in need of being purified and ultimately less
stressed. This cyclic, recurring, rhythmical effect of “pain may be due
to organic or psychic disturbances, and is the symptom which most
often causes a patient to seek help” (Merck Manual, 1972, p. 1267).
The Taxonomy Committee of the International Association for the
Study of Pain has defined pain as an unpleasant sensory and emotional
experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage (Wall &
Melzack, 1984). The Committee also has noted that pain is subjective.
From this, we may conclude that pain is perceived (aisthanomai) and
thus interpreted by the mind as pain. And, because pain is mediated
by the mind, we can further conclude that such mediation has contact
with the memory storage of the brain, including music memories. Since
memory differs from person to person, each has a different associa­
tion for pain as well as for music. For example, a person who has sus­
tained no serious injuries-such as broken bones, stitched lacerations,
or major burns-will
perceive pain differently from one who has
suffered from a severe injury.
Those now defining pain avoid the strict association of it with stimuli.
Their reason for this seems to be that once a person’s subjective report
of perceived pain in absence of tissue damage is accepted, there is no
assured method for distinguishing this pain from that reported by
another person with tissue damage.
Kotarba (1983) and Sternbach (1982) distinguish between two types
of physical pain. The first type is acute pain, described as a sharp sensa­
tion warning of something wrong within the body. The etiology of this
sensation is interpreted most often as tissue damage. Acute pain is of
recent onset or of short duration, causes immediate change in various
autonomic nervous system (ANS) processes, and elicits a reflexive
verbal and/or gesticulatory response. An interpretive description of
acute physical pain is reflected in the definition from Taber’sCyclopedic
Medical Dictionary (1981): Pain is “a sensation in which a person
experiences discomfort, distress, or suffering due to provocation of
sensory nerves.”
A second type of physical pain is chronic, which is “of at least several
months’ duration.. .tends to be an apparent habituation of the
autonomic responses” (Sternbach, 1982, p. 5), and elicits little or
no reflexive/defensive reflex. Chronic pain is constant rather than
intermittent.
Elements of Pain and Music
19
Friction (1982), Merskey (WE), and Sternbach (1982) describe
psychogenicpain. This diagnostic term is applied when there is a lack
of physical stimuli to which the pain may be attributed. Psychogenic
pain may be traced to three predominantly psychological mechanisms.
The fist and most common is anxiety tension, due mainly to an overly
stressful experiential situation. The second is hysterical conversion, in
which the pain is due to faulty thought patterns or repression of
thoughts and emotions. The third but relatively rare mechanism is
hallucinogenic, due to a false perception (annisthanomai) having no
relationship to environmental reality.
Psychoneurological Connections Between Music and Pain
Music and pain share some of the same psychoneurological process­
ing areas, perhaps most notable of which is the limbic system of the
upper brain stem (music-Hodges, 1980b; Roederer, 1987; painAchterberg & Lawlis, 1980;Sternbach, 1982).Roederer (1975)summarily
describes the limbic system as that part of the brain which comprises:
several structures (hippocampus, amygdala, several thalamic nuclei,
etc.). In conjunction with the hypothalamus (the part of the brain
that integrates the function of the autonomic or visceral nervous
system and regulates the endocrine system), the limbic system
polices sensorial input, selectively directs recent memory storage,
and mobilizes motor output, with the specificfunction of ensuring
a response that is most beneficial for the self-preservation of the
organism in a complex, continuously changing [external and inter­
nal] environment. It accomplishes this function by dispensingsensa­
tions of rewardand punishment or pleasure and pain, depending on
the current circumstances. (p. 164)
Roederer’s statement implies at least two psychoneurological
similarities between music and pain. The first similarity is that both
music and pain can be classified as sensory input. This indicates that
when music is heard, the signals sent to the brain are sensorily as real
as signals sent to the brain when pain is felt. This concept is reminiscent
of Gaston’s (1968) “fifth commandment”:
Melodic pattern, pitch, tempo, rhythm, and dynamics all demand
a preciseness that is astounding when carefully considered. All the
senses bring to us aspects of reality. To hear a chord of music is
no less real than to smell a rose, to see a sunset, to taste an apple,
or to feel the impact of striking a wall [painful!]. (p. 24)
The second psychoneurological similarity between music and pain
lies in the output from the limbic system, which is usually considered
the site of emotional synthesis (Regelski, 1978; Roederer, 1975, 1987).
The fact that the limbic system is primarily responsible for emotional
20
Eagle, Harsh
output indicates that emotions are tightly, if not inseparably, intertwined
with pain-as they are with music.
The psychoneurological relationship between music and pain
becomes more clear. Because both music and pain signals apparently
follow similar neural pathways, each can affect the other.9
Psychoacoustical Connections Between Music and Pain
Several acoustical, or vibrational, parameters of sound have been com­
monly identified: frequency, intensity/amplitude, wave form, duration,
and location (Hedden, 19980;Lundin, 1985).These parameters have their
psychological, or tonal, correlates: pitch, loudness, timbre/tone quality,
time, and localization (Lundin, 1985; Radocy & Boyle, 1979).
Pain also has psychological parameters. Sternbach (1982) presents
them as intensity, texture, duration, and location. In discussing the tem­
poral, or durational, aspects of pain, he states that:
it is helpful to establish whether a patient’s pain is constant. .
waxing or waning in severity, or intermittent. If pain is intermit­
tent, what is the period-minutes, hours, days-or is it irregular?
What has been the duration of time since the original onset of the
pain and what was the original cause? Pains that are intermittent
and have a very short period (described as shooting, jabbing, etc.)
are often related to nerve injuries. Other pains are more steady,
although vascular pains are sometimes throbbing and some muscle
pains involve spasms, which may be periodic. (p. 11)
1. Frequency/Pitch
Sternbach’s (1982)use of the words “waxing,” “waning,” “intermit­
tent,” “periodic,” and his inference of “time, ” indicate clearly the rela­
tionship of pain to the psychoacoustical elements of music. Since
frequency can be defined as “the rate of repetition of a regular event”
(ConciseScienceDictionary, 1984), since the rate of repetition in the event
is present in all the psychoacoustical elements of music, and since pain
occurs at varying rates, frequency may be the most interpretive causal
concept relating pain and music. The perception of the pitch of a musical
9A more completediscussion of the psychoneurological mechanisms of pain is beyond
the scope of this paper. However, among the several texts available on this subject, the
reader is referred to Achterberg (1985). Barber and Adrian (1982), Crue (1975), and
Osteweis, Kleinman, and Mechanic (1987), as well as to a text with the intriguing title
Listen to Your Pain (Benjamin & Borden, 1984).
attributes ofmusicalsound, psychologist
Lundin (1985)
To these four psychological/tonal
and music educator Hedden (1980)include density and volume, the latter seen as a func­
tion of both frequency (pitch) and intensity (loudness). Greater volume goes with greater
intensity and with less frequency. Density is seen as identical to brightness: The higher
the frequency, the more dense; the lower the frequency, the more diffuse.
Elements of Pain and Music
21
tone is determined by the regular rate of the sound. The perception
of the severity of pain is also determined by its regularity.
All things (quanta) are in a constant state of vibration; otherwise, the
thing is nonexistent to human perception. The form and “Iivingness”
of a thing is due to its rate of vibration, or frequency (Eagle, 1985c,1987c).
Accordingly, the whole human body has its rate of vibration, or funda­
mental frequency. And each bodily part has a particular frequency
which must be in synchrony-in harmony-with the body fundamental.
(“Fundamental” is used here in the acoustical sense, that is, a musical
tone consists of a fundamental frequency and its multiplicity of
overtones-partials or harmonics.) “It is these overtones (or partials)
which lend a note or instrument its particular [sonic] character” (UngerHamilton, 1979,p. 12). Likewise, the human body contains a multiplicity
of overtones through its bodily parts, each having its own rate of vibra­
tion, or frequency. The total of these partial overtones is contained in
the body fundamental.
When a bodily part is injured, the frequency of that overtone part
changes. The frequency of the injured part now has a frequency dif­
ferent from that of the part’s healthy state. The rate, or frequency, of
the nerve signals transmitting the pain is altered. The conjunction of
these vibrational factors results in an altered state of perception
(aisthanomai/aisthetikos). This pained state is most often considered
negative and, therefore, the body seeks to right itself. It seeks to come
more in harmony with itself through some kind of adjustment of its
overtone structure so that the fundamental body-self with its visceral
or body-part overtones may once again attain its original and particular
character. The point is that frequency is associated with pain through
the specific vibrational nature of the damaged tissue (physical pain)
or damaged psyche (psychogenic pain). Since the genesis of both music
and pain is vibrational frequency, one can affect the other.
2. Intensity/loudness
Intensity is defined as “the rate at which radiant energy is transferred
per unit area” (Concise ScienceDictionary, 1984). Researchers in both
acoustics and pain refer to intensity as an amount of exerted energy
and pressure. Just as the psychophysiological perception of the pain­
fulness of pain is determined by the severity, or the amount of energy,
conveying acute or chronic pain, the psychophysical perception of
loudness of a musical message is also determined by the amount of
energy conveying the acoustical sound.
3. WaveForm/Timbre, orQuality
Wave form is “the shape of a wave or the pattern representing a vibra­
tion” (ConciseScienceDictionary, 1984)of a single but complex frequency
In psychoacoustics, it is the timbral “aspect of a tone that gives it its
richness” (Lundin, 1985, p. 50) and is the determining factor of the
22
Eagle, Harsh
perceptual identification of a particular instrument. In pain, it is the
quality of the pain that indicates how the pain feels to and is perceived
by the person. Because pain is transmitted neurologically to the brain
in the form of impulses of energy, the quality of pain is perceived in
a similar manner to that of music. That is, both pain and music qualities
are determined by the distribution of energy: in pain, by the energized
neural conductors; in music, by the energized overtones (partials, or
harmonics) in a tone.
4. Duration/Time
Duration is “the time during which something exists or lasts”
(Webster’s,1975). Note that the physical attribute of duration is defined
in terms of the psychological attribute of time. Frequency/pitch and
intensity/loudness, as well as wave form/quality, deal with some aspect
of the duration/time domain, in that a) frequency is the number of cycles
of an oscillation of a thing in a given period of time; b) intensity is the
amount of time (rate) at which energy is radiated; and c) wave form
is the number of partials within a spectrum, each partial radiating
energy in a given period of time. With proper instrumentation, each
of these dimensions of tone can be measured as an aspect of physical
duration. But each is also an aspect of psychological time. In musical
composition, duration/time is manipulated not only in perceived
pitches, loudnesses, and tone qualities, but also in rhythms, beats, and
tempos. Thus, music alters time because music is time.
Music can also alter the perception of time in a nonmusical place.
For example, slow music decreases the subjective estimation of time,
while fast music increases time estimation (Hedden, 1980). The
manipulation of this single compositional element of music-tempo­
may be enough to alleviate pain. For, as Dossey (1982) states in Space,
Time & Medicine:
persons who experience pain ordinarily live in a contracted or con­
stricted time sense. Minutes seem like hours when one is hurting.
Becausethe time sense is constricted, pain is magnified-sometimes
far beyond what seems appropriate. Are there ways to intervene in
painful situations, ways to manipulate the sense of time by expand­
ing it? Can we lessen pain by “stretching” the time sense? (p. 46)
Experiences other than music which alter estimates of time include
age, personality characteristics, body temperature, and drugs. “Almost
all substances that we use to treat severe pain modify the patient’s sense
oftime....
In fact, any device or technique that expands one’s sense
of time can be used as an analgesic!” (Dossey, 1982, p. 47). Since music
is time and can also modify time perception, music can be used as an
analgesic. Music therapy is time therapy.
Elements of Pain and Music
23
5. Location/Localization
Location is “the objective measurement which pinpoints a sound
source in terms of coordinates or compass directions” (Hedden, 1980,
p. 79). Localization is the subjective judgment of where the musical
sound is in environmental space. The same is true of pain: For those
who have pain, localization is the judgment of where the pain is (Stem­
bach, 1982) in bodily space.
The best of modem science-quantum physics-has determined not
only that space is inextricably entwined with time, but that it is so much
so that the concept of spacetime is foundational to the present-day study
of psychophysical phenomena. Interpretation of the process of space­
time has been enhanced (at the very least) by physicist Heisenberg’s
Uncertainty Principle, which is concerned with the profound effects
of the human observer observing the phenomena. Accordingly and
therefore, we may say that if people (observers) perceptually locate the
etiology of their radiating pain, they can alter the cycling, rhythmical
process of pain.
Theoretically, then, a medicinal dose of appropriately-composed
radiating, cycling, rhythmical music can be a most potent pain reliever
and most safe (i.e., the least side effects). Granted, the musical dose
must be carefully constructed with its musical elements of pitch,
loudness, etc. The frequency of the pain and the total frequency of the
elements of the music must be scientifically determined and analyzed,
the difference between the resulting two frequencies established, the
musical content re-adjusted, and the result artistically applied. When
this occurs, the time-altering rhythm (broadly defined) of the music
will psychoneurologically replace the rhythm of the pain. That is, the
result will be perceived by the patient to be neurophysiologically satis­
fying and psychosocially enhancing and, therefore, aesthetically and
beautifully pleasing.
Conclusion of Theorizations
All bodily processesare governed by the laws of physics. This includes
healing. The laws of the universe “out there"-in the environment out­
side the human body-are equally applicable to the function of the
universe “in here"-inside the body. “Out there” and “in here” are
both composed of vibrations and vibro-magnetic fields, the analytical
and perceptual interpretative parts of which are frequencies/pitches,
intensities/loudnesses, wave forms/tone qualities (timbres), dura­
tions/times, and locations/local&rations. Of such stuff is the body made
and music composed. The point is that:
the body is not real in the same sense that a particle of physics,
such as an electron, is not real. The body does not possess
24
Eagle, Harsh
well-defined boundaries.. The body, instead, is perhaps best
viewed as a confluence of agreement brought forward by the
resonance of parallel processes [of rhythmic music and pain].
What we call reality, in effect, is made up of the infinities of
[rhythmic] processes. (Wolf, 1986, p. 259)
The body is in a constant state of cellular change, so the body changes
from moment to moment and over a period of time through the inter­
change of electromagnetic energy (i.e., chemical action) and quantized
mass (i.e., cells and their constituents). If a person perceives him­ or
herself to be in pain, whether it be due to cellular or psychic damage
or whether the pain be acute or chronic, the body attempts to right
itself to rid itself of the pain. Alteration of the pain and, consequently,
“a confluence of agreement” (i.e., to become whole, “holy”) within
the operation of the bodily parts can be brought forward by the
resonance of parallel processes of injecting music. If the vibration of
music can be brought into close resonance with the vibration of the
pain, then the psychological perception of pain is altered and
eliminated.” This resonating body then enters into the “biodance”
(Dossey, 1982), the endless exchange and transformation of energy and
mass, the dance of life processing, of fulfilling. We perceive (aisthetikos)
this musical biodance to be beautiful (aesthetic). And all because we
hear (aio). The ancient Greeks were correct.
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the managementofpain.
New York: Brunner/Mazel.
“This theoretical discussion centers around the influence of music on perceived pain. This
implies that the main process in this phenomenon is psychosociological. But evidence
exists which suggests that music influences neurophysiological behavior as well. For syn­
thesizing discussions, see several texts in music psychology, especially those writings
by psychologists Davies (1978),Deutsch (1982).Dowling and Harwood (1986),Farnsworth
(1969),and Lundin (1985);music educators Hodges (1980a),and Radocy and Boyle (1979).
Also see the edited texts by physicians Droh and Spintge (1983). and Spintge and Droh
(1985, 1987a,
1967b).Of particular interest is the unique laboratory controlled, experimental
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of musical elements in the musical context an several psychoneurological parameters.
Theoretical attempts have been made to interpret the influence of music on behavior
in light of concepts fromquantum physics, including the work of music therapists Eagle
(1983a 1983b. 1984a, 1984b, 1985a, 1985b, 1985c. 1986, 1987a, 1987b, 1987c),Eagle and
Lokey (1982).Eagle and Schmidt (1982),and Lokey (1984);and political scientist Traphagan
and musician Traphagan (1986).
Elements of Pain and Music
25
Benjamin, B.E., &Borden, G. (1984).Listen to your pain: Theactive person’sguide to under­
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Eagle, C.T.Jr, (1983a,February). A creative
view of creativity.
Paper presented at the meeting
of the Loyola Music Symposium, New Orleans, LA.
Eagle, C.T. Jr. (1983b,February). Music therapy: The uncertainty ofit. Presentation made
at the meeting of the Southeastern Regional Conference of the National Associa­
tion for Music Therapy Conference, Savannah, GA.
Eagle, CT. ]r. (1984a, October). A quantum interfacingsystemfor musicand medicine.Paper
presented at the meeting of the 2nd International Symposium of the International
Society for Music in Medicine, Luedenscheid, West Germany.
Eagle, CT. Jr. (1984b, November). Quantum physics and systemstheory asan interfacebe­
tween music and medicine.Paper presented at the meeting of the National Associa­
tion for Music Therapy, Albuquerque, NM.
Eagle, CT. Jr. (1985a,March). Quantum physicsand creativearts. Presentation made at the
meeting of the Creative Arts Therapies, Norman, OK.
Eagle, C.T. Jr. (1985b.April). Quantum physics and music therapy. Presentation made at
the meeting of the American Association for Music Therapy, New York.
Eagle, CT. Jr.(1985c).A quantum interfacing system for music and medicine. In R. Spintge
& R. Droh (Eds.), Music in Medicine (pp. 319-341). (Book of proceedings of the 2nd
International Symposium of the International Society for Music in Medicine). Basel:
Editiones Roche.
Eagle, C.T. Jr. (1986,December). Exploring researchin musicand medicine.Paper presented
at the meeting of the Music and Health Conference, Eastern Kentucky University,
Richmond. KY.
Eagle, C.T. Jr. (1987a.February). The further and farther reachesofmusic therapy. Presenta­
tion made at the Southeastern Regional Conference of the National Association for
Music Therapy, Charleston, SC.
Eagle, CT. Jr. (1987b,April). Space,time &music. Presentation made at the Southwestern
Regional Conference of the National Association for Music Therapy, Dallas, TX.
Eagle, CT. Jr.(1987c).A quantum interfacing system for music and medicine. In R. Spintge
& R. Droh (Eds), Music in medicine(pp. 389-411). New York: Springer-Verlag.
Eagle, CT. Jr., & Lokey, M.E. (1982, November). NAMT: New age music therapy, Part I:
An historical perspective.Presentation made at the meeting of the National Associa­
tion for Music Therapy, Baltimore, MD.
Eagle, CT. Jr., & Schmidt (Peters), J.A. (1982, November). NAME: New agemusic therapy,
Part II: A theoreticalparadigm. Presentation made at the meeting of the National
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Charles T. Eagle Jr.,Ph.D., RMT, is Head of the Department of Music Therapy Medicine
and Health of Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas.As professor of music therapy,
psychophysics, and writer, his prominence in the field is far-reaching. He is the com­
piler of Music TherapyIndexand Music Psychologylndex, and has authored and co-authored
numerous professional articles. He is a member of the National Association for Music
Therapy (NAMT), the Texas Music Educators Association, the Society of Research
Psychology and Music Education, and the British Society of Music Therapy.
John M. Harsh is currently enrolled as a graduate student in the Department of Music
Therapy: Medicine and Health, at Southern Methodist University. He is serving a music
therapy internship at CPC Millwood Hospital in Arlington, Texas, and has worked as
a counselor with emotionally disturbed children.