Extract from Musique & Guérison, Traditions Amérindiennes, Aigle Bleu, a film by Debowska Production

There are a few music CDs that I will record for you without any other descriptions than those that will be on the CD cover. These will be classical solo guitar. This instrument is very special. It is not a coincidence that the guitar has become so popular over the years amongst all kinds of performers, rock bands, folk song artists, classical musicians, etc. Something about the intimacy with the instrument, the way it is held, the feminine shape it has, the amount of work and practice it requires, all create a special bond between the guitarist and his instrument.

This is significant for our understanding of the special music therapy potential of the classical guitar. Of all instruments, it has been tested as the one conveying the highest levels of vital energy and this with almost all guitarists . As I have already stated, the amount of love one pours into the music is directly proportional to the vital energy levels conveyed by that music. To really become proficient with the guitar, especially classical and flamenco guitar styles, one must really love the instrument. It really challenges one's faithfulness. For example I can stop playing the recorder flute for months and I'll be able to regain a fair mastery of the instrument within four to five days. If I were to stop the guitar for that length of time it would take many weeks to regain a semblance of what I can convey musically when I practice on a daily basis. Also, the rewards are great. The many different sounds it has allow a great depth of expression. The wide range of different sounds it can produce had Berlioz whom played it well describe the guitar as a small orchestra in itself. The great French composer Claude Debussy said of the guitar ‘the guitar is an expressive harpsichord’. Manuel de Falla, a renowned Spanish composer said ‘the guitar is the richest and most complete of all instruments due to its harmonic and polyphonic capabilities’ and the great violin virtuoso and composer Paganini said ‘I am a master of the violin but the guitar is my master’. All these quotes speak of the unique and endearing qualities of the instrument. Of all my instruments, it is the one I love most and also the one I find the most difficult and demanding. As such, I am convinced that it can be very helpful to those who can listen to it with no preconceptions.

I remember once in a music class at Laval University where the teacher, curious to see the music students’ reaction to my therapeutic music, played a simple guitar study by Fernando Sor I had recorded. Two comments came right off after it was heard. First a guitar player said with some contempt that it was the 1st study by Sor in Segovia well known compilation. Secondly a young lady pianist said with disdain that the music must have some subliminal technology included as she had felt sleepy listening to it. When I was working as a music therapist at the Quebec General Hospital for the elderly, most patients responded very well to the music. The ones who had the most difficulty receiving benefit from the music were those who had studied it when they were young. They either knew too much about music to listen with their hearts and souls rather than with their intellect, or they had not appreciated that music be forced on them by their parents and hated it. I once had my guitar teacher listen to a guitar recording I made. She could only hear the mistakes and shortcomings in the music and it was of no therapeutic benefit to her. These are examples of preconceptions that can limit one’s ability to receive the therapeutic benefits of music.

I am not a virtuoso. My mastery of the guitar is very limited. Yet I play in such a way that people can derive benefit from it. When I left the family home in my late teens to study music at Laval University my parents conveyed to me that the neighbours complained that they were having trouble sleeping without the music I used to practice in the evening. That was the guitar on which I would practice every evening. I remember a morning on Christmas day when I woke first and went to my guitar. Several people later said they had already awakened and were ready to get up. Upon hearing the guitar they went straight back to sleep. Their bodies needed that sleep after the previous evening of festivities. It remained quiet for a few more hours in the house. When friends at school got hung up on LSD and could not sleep for anxiety, it would take only a few minutes of guitar before they were sound asleep. Sleep here is an indication of deep relaxation and the being going to a place where they can receive deep healing. I have seen this countless times. Once I was in a restaurant having a coffee when they put on a recording of my guitar music. I didn't know that they had one so it was a surprise. But after a few minutes I felt deep relaxation and relief. The problems I was experiencing went away and I left the place feeling relaxed and renewed.

As all string instruments, the guitar is invaluable as a means to energise the body and mind and enhance the health and vitality of the brain and nervous system. It conveys a good deal of vital energy and creates a sense of comfort and peace. I hope you enjoy this simple music, as I can only play fairly simple repertoire, yet the spirit with which it is interpreted may be helpful if you are open to its beneficial influence. At the moment (summer 2010) all my guitar recordings are too ancient to renew and this fall I hope to record at least one CD.

Harmonics is singing several notes at once (up to 3 notes, 2 being more common). This very special music comes from the shamanic traditions of the world. Many shamanic cultures throughout the world have used this droning voice that creates clearly audible overtones above the main tone. Some Native American sources call it Spirit Voices. The Tibetan Buddhists have also perfected this type of singing, sounding notes an octave below the bass tone. In North America, the Inuit culture has a similar technique called ‘throat chanting’. Up close, face to face, a couple of Inuit Throat Singers will make throat like sounds often imitating animals. These sounds bouncing off one another create complex overtones.

These special tones have a profound effect on our consciousness. They bring us to other levels of awareness initiating trance like states of perception. As the harmonics resound into different octaves of manifestation, they touch off subtle reactions in our own mind stream. These sounds will bring us into contact with other dimensions.

There are many different dimensions sharing this time-space continuum with us. Crystals also have the potential and ability of vibrating easily into other realms of existence. Sound is a privileged door into levels of perception and reality that can bring many benefits. Harmonics give very special healing and can work on all levels of being, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. They give deep relaxation, reorganization of mis-aligned energies, realignment of etheric and astral energies, rejuvenation, understanding problems and finding their solution, clearing and purifying the energy channels and opening new pathways in the brain. Modern research on harmonics has found that listening to harmonic sounds will charge the cortex of the brain, reduce respiration and heart rate and lower brain wave activity. Mark Ryder, PhD of Southern Methodist University, found that people who listened to the music of the Harmonic Choir as opposed to other types of music, showed decreased heart rate, slower respiration and lower galvanic skin response.¹ 

Harmonics are actually present in all sounds. The clarity and number of harmonics present in any given sound will determine its texture and sound quality. As you listen to harmonics, a whole new way of hearing occurs. You will hear things you had not noticed before and your perceptions will change.

Please be careful if you want to listen to my recording of harmonic sounds, Mysteries. Do not listen to it when driving a motor vehicle. I tried it and nearly took the ditch as I closed my eyes, completely taken up by the music.  

The central piece can have dramatic effects on the consciousness of people. It is good to be aware of that and to be receptive to the reactions of the people around us. Too much transformation too quickly can be difficult for certain people.

¹ See Mark Ryder's works for more information on that subject.

Extract from Musique & Guérison, Traditions Amérindiennes, Aigle Bleu, a film by Debowska Production