How Music Can Help Anyone -Stephen Matus

     Music, it's full of vocal or instrumental sounds that combine to create a harmony or expression of emotion. Songs can tell a story that people can relate to. Each song is made with a purpose for the listeners or the players to understand. Music comes in all shapes and forms. Every song uses some form of instrument to create a background or to set the standard of the piece. Then there is the singer who adds their own take to the story that the song sets. But music can help everyone both metaphorically and physically.

    So, how does music benefit someone? Well, according to gethealthystayhealthy.com, music can help a person in ten different ways. First off, music helps improve a person's mood. The website goes into detail about how studies show that music can help regulate emotions and create a happy relaxation in everyday life. The next benefit which I consider to be the most important is the fact that music helps reduce stress. The site goes into an explanation about how slow tempo, low pitch, and no lyric music typically helps reduce stress. The next benefit relates to levels of stress, this third benefit is that music lessens anxiety. Anxiety can be caused due to high levels of stress for a variety of reasons. Music helps put the mind to ease, reducing stress and anxiety levels. The rest of the seven reasons don't need an explanation. This website continues to state that music can: improve exercise, improve memory, ease pain, provide comfort, improve cognition (mental processes), help children with autism spectrum disorder, and soothe premature babies.

    This next section focuses on myself and how music has helped me through the years. I really began to get involved in music in the fourth grade when I decided to play the alto saxophone. From then to now, I have learned and improved my skills. I began to realize that whenever I played the saxophone, it put me into this zone where I was only focused on myself and the music I was playing. The music I played varied depending on how I was feeling each time. But I can conclude that the benefits I mentioned above did apply to me whenever I played my own music or just listened to it.

    So, after reading the factual benefits and my personal experience with music, will this change how you listen to music? Either way, music has such a large impact and in the end, really helps with a person's emotions, focus, memory, and performance.