Vocal Visions

Research shows that music has a positive effect on emotional well-being, memory, health and creativity. Join this 2-part workshop as we explore music and sound that elicit feelings, memories, body sensations, ideas, and activism as a community. We will listen, share and participate in creating music that lifts our spirits and connects us to our inner landscape as we navigate through the holiday season.

"Especially now, in times when people are feeling sad, stressed and isolated because of the COVID-19 pandemic, people should definitely turn to music to better their mental well-being,” - GCBH Executive Director Sarah Lenz Lock, AARP's senior vice president for policy.

"We've found compelling evidence that musical interventions can play a health-care role in settings ranging from operating rooms to family clinics," says Levitin, author of the book "This is Your Brain on Music" (Plume/Penguin, 2007). The analysis also points to just how music influences health. The researchers found that listening to and playing music increase the body's production of the antibody immunoglobulin A and natural killer cells — the cells that attack invading viruses and boost the immune system's effectiveness. Music also reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol. “This is one reason why music is associated with relaxation," Levitin says. – from Music As Medicine by Amy Novotney, American Psychological Association