Song Therapy
Song Therapy
The therapeutic power of music is well-attested (see Oliver Sacks’ Musicophilia). But we don’t hear much about song specifically—that is, singing. With no scientific basis whatsoever, I am going to assert that singing is therapeutic (and I will brook no dissent). Oddly enough, I think this is particularly true for the vocally challenged. I won’t go into my philosophical and psychological reasons for asserting this—they are at least as good as Freud’s—but will skip immediately to practicalities. Here’s what you do: you pick a song you are particularly fond of, which you would like to be able to sing—as it might be (I speak autobiographically) This Boy by the Beatles. Try not to pick an easy song, but go for one with a challenging section (usually high-pitched). Now learn the lyrics till you have them down without thinking. You can do this just by memorizing them cold or by listening to a recording of the song and singing along till you have absorbed the lyrics. Now begin to concentrate on the melody and rhythm, a bit at a time, going over them repeatedly. Do this by listening to the song and singing along to it. Repeat this for about a week every day, possibly a few times a day. You may have to repeat a particular passage many times, and it may sound horrible, but keep at it. If you choose, say, Over the Rainbow, be prepared to repeat the first word many times—”Somewhere!” There is a big pitch jump in there and you need to work on it. Now just keep on singing the song over and over again (a hundred times will do) till you can do it without thinking. Keep trying to improve technically. Now here is the vital point therapeutically: do everything in your power to inject emotion into your voice. Ideally, you should feel teary at some point; songs are designed to do that. Really lay it on thick. Don’t be afraid to be syrupy if the song calls for it (you might want to tackle Love Me Tender). If you feel brave, sing it in front of someone you trust. If you are very committed, try to learn Mother by John Lennon—it’s extremely emotional and difficult to sing. When you have learned your chosen song, you can move on to another song; repeat the procedure with this song. Don’t settle for a mediocre half-hearted performance. Do this for a few months and keep note of the therapeutic benefits. I will be interested to learn about your progress, vocally and emotionally.
I sing and play guitar for a living. And have done for some thirty odd years. When rehearsing a newly learned song, I am sometimes overcome by emotion, to the point of tears. At that moment i am completely halted by the power of the melody or a specific lyrical phrase. This can even happen on a second or third attempt to run the song, Eventually i make it through, but still worry I might have the same thing happen when performing it live…yet it never does. Somehow even remembering a lost loved one, for whom song had special meaning, is not enough to open the flood gates when an audience is present. Not sure why that is.
Good comment. I experience something similar. I become detached from the emotion, though it is still there. Two questions: what therapeutic effect do you think singing has, and what specific songs trigger your emotions most strongly?
In my case singing solo seems to release a type of vague emotional pressure, and is liberating. Whereas performing vocal harmony with another singer is somehow consoling. The songs that trigger emotions most strongly seem to be those that evoke a sense of longing. Sometimes it’s just a measure or two of melody, or a cadence that serves the lyric profoundly in that moment. It is not always specific, and is not constant.
Most recently the song ‘Hang me in the Tulsa County Stars’ by John Moreland.
I’ll have a listen. I currently like Mother by John Lennon from this point of view.
I have much the same feelings, except I also feel joined to another person if I sing with them. Longing, yes. Perhaps this is why rock n’ roll didn’t last; not much longing. I do wonder whether learning to sing could help people therapeutically.
‘Mother’ must surely be one of Lennon’s most powerful songs. He sounds as though he’s really purging. Would be quite something to know how he felt after performing it live.
I didn’t know the song till quite recently; then I decided I had to learn it. Every time I sing it is an experience. Possibly the most wrenching song ever written and performed.
Anne Murray’s “A Little Good News” gets me misty-eyed when I hear it. It won her a Grammy. Fast forward to today and the world is still a huge mess. Julian Lennon’s “Saltwater” is also powerful lyrically. Truthfully, I’m part of that large crowd that hates hearing their voice on tape (and how different really is singing?). Interestingly, even John Lennon didn’t like the sound of his recorded voice. Neither does Billy Joel.
I wonder how many singers actually like the sound of their own voice. I’m sure Bob Dylan doesn’t. Does Celine Dion? But you don’t have to like your own voice to benefit from song therapy.