Sound, Music and Consciousness

Research, links, information and articles featuring consciousness, altered states of consciousness, music and sound.

Below is just some of the information available today that we found interesting – do check back as this list will be updated on a regular basis. For regular ‘soundbytes’ you may want to sign up to our Blog, subscribe to our mailing list, or follow us by clicking on the social media icons below.

Altered States of Consciousness (ASC)
An ASC is a natural process necessary for good health and wellbeing. There are times during the day when we all slip quite naturally into a shallow ASC, which is usually experienced by feeling drifty and day-dreamy (usually around mid-afternoon!). This temporary ‘screen-saver mode’ allows our brain to concentrate on other important factors such as balancing hormones and regulating the autonomic nervous system etc.

Altered states of consciousness, as well as being natural, can also be induced. Naturally induced ASC is a deeply relaxing and pleasant experience which has been promoted by thousands of years as being life enhancing – even enlightening. An ASC can be induced in many different ways but at BAST we use sound applied in a specific way resulting in a deeply relaxing, restorative and transformative experience. Our 1-2-1 therapy and group ‘soundbath’ relaxation sessions are specifically designed to maximise the ASC experienced by playing certain instruments (or using the voice) in a specific way. Our research has yielded some very positive results. See the article by Lyz Cooper below.

Articles

Sound Affects: Altered States of Consciousness for Health and Wellbeing – Lyz Cooper 2016 PDF article

Auditory Driving as a Ritual Technology: A Review and Analysis – Gabe Turow 2015
PDF article

Books
Music and Consciousness: Philosophical, Psychological, and Cultural Perspectives
Edited by David Clarke and Eric Clarke