Playing For Change

For me, singing sad songs often has a way of healing a situation. It gets the hurt out in the open into the light, out of the darkness.

Reba McEntire

There have been studies done to show the impact music has on our lives. Researchers have found that music can reduce anxiety (Wiley-Blackwell) and can help improve performance (British). There have even been studies on linking  the long effects of being a musician to better hearing (Baycrest). All of these studies show that music produces positive results in every form.

A group of people believe that music can change the world and created a movement called Playing For Change in 2005. What they did was travel around the world recording street musicians playing the same songs and then put them together in one track. From the video below you can feel how inspiring and beautiful the results were.

You can get involved as well. Some of the musicians travel the states together replicating the music and spreading the idea that music can bring us all together in harmony. The link here will take you to their website where you can purchase their documentary and read more about their hope for positive change through one of the most profound and abundant resources we have on earth.

Playing for Change Website

Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care (2011, September 13). Older musicians experience less age-related decline in hearing abilities than non-musicians. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 1, 2012, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2011/09/110913091557.htm

British Psychological Society (BPS) (2012, April 17). Listening to your favorite music boosts performance. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 1, 2012, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2012/04/120417221709.htm

Wiley-Blackwell (2011, August 9). Music reduces anxiety in cancer patients. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 1, 2012, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2011/08/110809212424.htm