Pentatonic scale & Music Therapy
The simple Pentatonic Scale with five notes, is one that deeply resonates with human beings across the globe. This was demonstrated by the musician Bobby Mcferrin at World and Science Festival in 2009 where he engaged the audience with his interactive performance “Notes & Neurons: In Search of the common Chorus”. He tested the audience by playing just two notes from the Pentatonic Scale, and yet the audience were able to naturally tune in and sing back all the remaining notes of the Pentatonic Scale.
This scale is important part of our heritage and the word “Pentatonic” comes from Greek, where “pente” means five and “tonic” tone. Its usage can be traced back over 50,000 years, and today every music system in the world shares the same 5 notes from Pentatonic Scale. It seems as if it is pre-installed in our DNA, just like the human instinct for language.
Everyone has experienced the transformative effect that music has on the body, mind, spirit and emotions. The vibration and frequency of the notes is felt so deeply that it creates measurable physical responses. It can alter your body temperature, influence mood from joy to tears. It is therefore clear that music therapy can be used to bring the body into balance and improve wellbeing.
