#music-therapy

#music-therapy

Workplace pressure is no stranger to London professionals. Targets rise. Expectations shift. Schedules tighten. Every sector feels it. Finance moves fast. Tech races forward. Health care strains each day. Creative industries chase constant deadlines. This pace often leaves people drained and searching for something that restores energy and motivation. Music-based activities are filling that gap. They offer relief, structure, and a genuine lift in mood.

I've done a lot of work on myself. I've been in therapy for a long time, and I'm fascinated by my own mind in understanding who I am, but also who I am to others and how I can be better to others. It would be impossible for that not to seep into the music. I'm very interested in the concept of music as therapy, she said in an interview with Harper's Bazaar last October.

In Ukraine, sound carries a different weight: the cautionary blurt of sirens, Shahed drones humming overhead, the concussive thwack of air defence interception and the subsequent explosion. But as well as the sounds of war, which continue three and a half years into Russia's full-scale invasion, music still plays, clubs remain open during the day (closing well before the midnight curfew), and electronic dance music remains an intrinsic part of many Ukrainian lives.

I want to be the slowest sitarist on the planet, Rishab Sharma says. Everyone is trying their gimmicks and playing as fast as they can but I want to provide a sense of comfort and peace when we're so busy and full of anxiety. The youngest of Ravi Shankar's sitar disciples, 27-year-old Sharma has spent the past five years transforming the ancient Indian classical instrument into a tool for wellbeing.

For years, local DJ Dave Gilmore soundtracked other people's nights out in pubs and clubs. But now he's curating a uniquely personal playlist - the songs of his own life to carry him through terminal illness. The list includes both November Rain and Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns and Roses, Apache by The Shadows - which inspired Dave to play guitar - and Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

For those who get carsick, there's nothing worse. The combined feeling of nausea, cold sweats, dizziness and a headache means you're desperate to reach your destination as soon as possible. While some advice might be to 'look at the horizon' or breathe into a brown paper bag, it's hard to know what will work or what's an old wives' tale. Now, a study into the issue has revealed a surprisingly simple solution that can slash symptoms in half.

In Gaza, there is no escape from the reality of war, said Al Jazeera's Ibrahim al-Khalili, reporting from Gaza City, where exploding buildings and chaos reign and desperate people attempt to escape gunfire at food distribution sites. Added to these horrors is the ever-present sound of Israeli drones, he said, pausing to listen to the sound of a drone flying above.

A Chinese study with mice found that playing music led to higher levels of Lactobacillus in their gut, which increased the acidity enough to deter Salmonella infections.

Logan Becker, who has a rare connective tissue disorder, received a personalized, upbeat anthem from the Songs of Love Foundation, reflecting his unique experiences and feelings.

Researchers are now recognizing music as a neurological stimulus capable of rewiring your brain, essential for restoring functions like speech and movement.

Singing activates emotional brain networks that bypass cognitive defenses.

"I've played to people who are at the end of their life. You can see the recognition of music in their eyes."