Research on live therapeutic music
MHTP is committed to identifying and promoting research that provides accurate, reproducible examples of the effectiveness of live therapeutic music that can be used to support the needs of Certified Music Practitioners and their patients.
Using live therapeutic music as non-pharmacologic pain management
In response to the opioid crisis, The Joint Commission updated their pain assessment and management standards.
CMPs can help hospitals meet two requirements in the pain assessment and management standards for hospitals (PDF):
Requirement EP 2: The hospital provides nonpharmacologic pain treatment modalities. CMPs can help hospitals meet this requirement by offering live therapeutic music at the bedside to patients in need of pain management.
Requirement EP 4: The hospital provides information to staff and licensed independent practitioners on available services for consultation and referral of patients with complex pain management needs. CMPs can help hospitals meet this requirement by providing live therapeutic music to an opioid-addicted patient needing pain management.
We encourage CMPs to use this information with healthcare administrators when you are seeking paid work opportunities. For CMPs who are currently employed, we recommend alerting your administrators to these benefits to enhance their understanding of the value that you provide as a live therapeutic musician.
Peer-reviewed studies on the benefits of therapeutic music
Research on healing music has been conducted for decades. Studies consistently show that live therapeutic music can influence the following:
● Reduce anxiety in general and before surgery.
● Influence heart rate and respiration.
● Reduce blood pressure.
● Lessen the perception and increase the tolerance of pain.
● Boost the immune system.
● Decrease stress hormone levels.
● Distract from negative situations.
● Aid sleep.
These effects contribute to a body that is more receptive to healing, which can lead to less time in intensive/critical care, shorter overall hospital stays, and increased patient satisfaction.
Anxiety: After receiving live therapeutic music via FaceTime, participants tended to highly agree that the intervention improved their emotional state (92%); that it provided a pleasurable experience (92.4%); and that it reduced their stress and anxiety (89.5%). See the 2021 study➚.
Anxiety, muscle tension, pain: Live therapeutic music provided by a Certified Music Practitioner as part of a holistic patient intervention for patients admitted to a tertiary care center for an emergent medical condition was shown to have a positive impact in reducing pain, anxiety, and muscle tension. Read the 2010 exploratory study➚.
Dementia: This paper reports on research exploring the effects of music played for care home residents with dementia and someone closely connected to the resident. A key finding was that structural elements of the interventions combined with characteristics of the music played facilitated an internalized experience of sonically transporting listeners away from their present reality and fulfilling the basic human needs for inclusion, comfort, identity, occupation and attachment. Read the full 2018/2020 report on Dr. Claire Garabedian’s website➚.
End of life: "The healthcare musicians received feedback on their musical visits indicating that they brought pleasure, gratitude, and consolation to the whole ward community." See the 2022 in-depth case study➚, which explores the similarities between music therapists and healthcare musicians.
End of life: Live music intervention sessions were added to standard care for patients receiving a hospice or palliative care consult. “There were significant decreases in pain, anxiety, nausea, shortness of breath, and feelings of depression along with significant increase in feelings of well-being. Opioid use in time periods after the music intervention trended toward decreased usage when compared to the equivalent time period before. Finally, compiled personal narratives of patients' and families' experiences of the music intervention demonstrated common themes of spirituality, comfort, relaxation, escape, and reflection.” Read the 2018/19 mixed quantitative and qualitative study➚.
End of life: “Both quantitative as well as qualitative research showed positive changes in psycho-physiological well-being.” “Twelve articles, reporting on nine quantitative and three qualitative research studies were included. Seven out of the nine quantitative studies investigated pain as an outcome. All of the included quantitative studies reported positive effects of the music therapy.” (We have only included studies that refer to music therapy when the patient’s experience was passive, which more closely aligns with the type of live therapeutic music provided by Certified Music Practitioners.) Read the 2018 systematic literature review➚.
Oncology: Cancer patients received 30 minutes of live therapeutic saxophone music. In comparison to the control group, there was a statistical difference in oxygen saturation and mood level. Read the 2014 randomized control trial➚.
Opioid use: When live music was provided, a patients’ perceptions of pain, nausea, depression, anxiety, and shortness of breath decreased. Overall feelings of well-being increased. Among participants who were being treated with opioids, “there was a trending toward significant decrease in opioid use.” See the 2018 mixed qualitative and quantitative study➚.
Pain and anxiety: “Music interventions significantly decreased anxiety (MD -0·69, 95 per cent c.i. -0·88 to -0·50; P < 0·001) and pain (MD -0·50, -0·66 to -0·34; P < 0·001) compared with controls, equivalent to a decrease of 21 mm for anxiety and 10 mm for pain on a 100-mm visual analogue scale. Changes in outcome corrected for baseline were even larger: MD -1·41 (-1·89 to -0·94; P < 0·001) for anxiety and -0·54 (-0·93 to -0·15; P = 0·006) for pain. Music interventions provided during general anaesthesia significantly decreased pain compared with that in controls (MD -0·41, -0·64 to -0·18; P < 0·001). ” Read the 2018 meta analysis➚.
Pain: Two researchers independently reviewed scholarly articles published between 2004 and 2107. “Most of the reviews found a significant effect of music on pain.” However, the authors suggest that more specific and detailed music trials should be conducted. Read the 2018 umbrella review➚.
Pain: This analysis compared live therapeutic music to a recorded mindfulness exercise by measuring participants’ vagally mediated heart rate variability (VM-HRV) and blood volume pulse amplitude (BVP-A). “Higher levels of VM-HRV in the music therapy group highlight the importance of a therapeutic relationship for the effectiveness of relaxation interventions in end-of-life care settings. Music therapy caused significantly stronger reductions of vascular sympathetic tone and, therefore, may be indicated in the treatment of pain and stress-related symptoms in palliative care.” (We have only included studies that refer to music therapy when the patient’s experience was passive, which more closely aligns with the type of live therapeutic music provided by Certified Music Practitioners.) Read the 2016 analysis➚.
Pain and patient experience: This report examines twelve peer-reviewed articles that explore the intervention of music in the hospital environment. The authors all assert value from offering this creative service to possibly reduce pain and provide comfort. Read the 2019 report➚.
Patient affect and perceptions of care: After receiving live therapeutic music at the bedside from a Certified Music Practitioner, the experimental group and control group completed a questionnaire. “Patients respond to LTM with increased positive affect and by assigning higher ratings to the care they receive.” Read the 2013 randomized field study➚.
Pediatric: A systematic review and meta-analysis of three randomized controlled trials involving 196 pediatric patients receiving music prior to surgery found that “a statistically significant positive effect was demonstrated on postoperative pain…and on anxiety and distress…” Read the 2015 meta-analysis➚.
Preoperative stress and fear: For reducing heart rate and blood pressure before surgery, live music was more effective than recorded music. See the 2020 pilot study➚.
Stress in healthcare staff: After receiving a live therapeutic music session, “a 44.74% reduction in perceived stress scores were observed” among healthcare workers. See the 2021 study➚.
Tiredness, sadness, fear, and worry in healthcare staff: In an evaluation of the passive receipt of therapeutic music, “an immediate significant variation in the CS [clinical staff] emotional status was observed. The results seem to confirm that in an emergency situation, it is possible to put in place a remote MT [music therapy] support intervention for CS exposed to highly stressful situations.” Although term music therapy was used, the intervention described in this study more closely aligns with the type of services provided by Certified Music Practitioners. See more about what therapeutic music is. Read the 2020 preliminary study➚.
Trained healthcare musicians versus performers: This study explores the differences between how performing musicians versus therapeutically trained musicians address therapeutic music in open areas of a hospital (lobbies, nurses’ stations). Therapeutic musicians provide a wider variety of music, which is adjusted on the fly to meet the needs of the environment in the moment. Providing music in a therapeutic setting is oriented towards the needs of the environment (such as reducing anxiety in a waiting room) as opposed to an entertainment-focused music performance. Read the 2018 qualitative study➚.
Well-being in healthcare staff: A “[M]indfulness-based breathing and music therapy decreased stress and work-related strain (P < .05) and increased psychological well-being (P < .05)” in nurses. “The control group showed no statistically significant changes on these measures (P > .05).” The term music therapy was improperly used to describe what was actually a therapeutic music intervention: “the participant nurses listened to light piano music as background music” during the instructions on mindful breathing. See the 2022 randomized controlled trial➚.
Older research on the benefits of music:
* The studies that we reference show the effects of live therapeutic music, and it is unfortunate that some use the term music therapy improperly. We have only included studies that refer to music therapy when the patient’s experience was passive, which more closely aligns with the type of live therapeutic music provided by Certified Music Practitioners. See more about what therapeutic music is.
Scholarly project
2018: Educating Nursing Students on Live Music Programming (PDF)
Judith Raab, CMP
A healthcare workplace can be very hectic. Music has the potential to relieve stress. This study examines the impact of live music on nursing students.
As tomorrow’s nursing professionals, they will be future hospital stakeholders. Educating them on this programming can encourage them to value music in the clinical setting.
Citation credit is necessary to reference any material contained in this document. In APA: Raab, J. (2018). Educating Nursing Students on Live Music Programming [Scholarly project]. In MHTP.org. Retrieved from https://www.mhtp.org/therapeutic-music-research
What can I do?
If you would like to donate some of your time and serve on the Research Committee, please contact mhtp@mhtp.org.
We appreciate donations to the MHTP Research Fund. Donations to MHTP are tax-deductible.
* The studies that we reference show the effects of live therapeutic music, and it is unfortunate that some use the term music therapy improperly. We have only included studies that refer to music therapy when the patient’s experience was passive, which more closely aligns with the type of live therapeutic music provided by Certified Music Practitioners. See more about what therapeutic music is.