Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Twenty-First Century Relaxation Music For Meditation

By Edward Crivello

Relaxation music is just one of many tools that can be used for improving a your Well-being. There are many uses for relaxation music such as for meditation, spa background music, music for yoga, healing, sleep, hypnotherapy, and of course relaxation.

There thousands of different types of relaxation music available today, so many in fact, that perhaps some of us are a bit overwhelmed at times trying to figure out where to start as far as selecting the relaxation music style that fits our current need the most. One thing to take into consideration when trying to choose among the many different styles of relaxation music is that some types of relaxation may be more effective and more relaxing than others.

Some are of the opinion that relaxation music embedded with specific audio sounds known as binaural beats and isochronic tones are the most effective type of relaxation music on the market because they serve to bring your brainwaves to a relaxing level depending upon which frequencies they are set at.

Different brainwave frequencies are associated with different mental states. So by listening to binaural beats or isochronic tones which are set at a certain frequency you can coax your brainwaves to that same frequency, and in doing so, achieve the mental state associated with that frequency.

For example: Normally when we are awake and active during the day our brainwaves are at a beta brainwave level. If someone were to measure our brainwaves with an EEG device they would find that beta waves are the dominant frequency during busy anxious thinking. But if you listen to a relaxation cd or mp3 that is embedded with, for example, binaural beats that are programmed with a frequency of 7.83 hz, then your mind will fall from an active beta level of 22 hz to a very relaxed borderline alpha/theta level of 7.83 hz. Meditation accomplishes this, but it takes a lot more practice.

In a way this type of relaxation music is a twenty-first century form of meditation music because it accomplishes the same thing as meditation but in a fraction of the time. Even though it was around in the twentieth century it is only now beginning to gain wider recognition - slowly but surely. A lot can be written about how it all works, but the important thing is to just get into the habit of daily listening to relaxation music embedded with either isochronic tones or binaural beats, and then experience the results for yourself.

By themselves binaural beats and isochronic tones are plain sounding - just pulsing tones or beats in your ears. For this reason most companies who create binaural beat or isochronic tone recordings also add pleasant nature sounds, or ambient sounds, or new age music to their relaxation mp3's and cd's. These may be more expensive than your average relaxation audio products, but they are more effective.

It is true that one type of relaxation music that someone finds very relaxing and rejuvenating, may to another person be very boring, or even irritating. It is a matter of personal preferences. But it is not about which style of relaxation music can evoke the best emotional response. Rather it is about listening to relaxation music that is specifically targeted towards training the brain to become more healthy and balanced. And a healthy mind means a healthy life on all levels (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual). - 15634

About the Author: