Musopathy is a vision to transform music-based healing into a precise, universal, and quantifiable health science, rather than a region, culture or genre centric form of therapy.  It owes its origin equally to the field of Music Therapy and the Science and Math of Sound.  However, it is distinctive from the typical approach seen in of Music Therapy (MT) where music of diverse genres like Western & Indian Classical, Rock, Jazz etc are used to provide personalised palliative solutions, though both endeavour to tap on the power of music for wellbeing.  

The Musopathy Triad

Musopathy has three principal elements, the first two of which are Participative (where subjects are actively involved in the interventions) while the last one is Receptive (where subjects only listen to audios).

1. Tonation Breathing Techniques (TBT)
2. Musopathy Aural Neural Engagement Techniques (MANET)
3. Medical Music: A whole new genre of “Fundamental Music” created for Health research as an alternative or compliment to the current practice of using “complex” music meant for entertainment or devotional purposes.  This will enable scholars to break down music into its fundamental, universal acoustic aspects (like tempo, volume and combinations of notes of diverse frequencies) and study their physiological and psychological impacts to pinpoint which elements contribute to specific health outcomes. 

Laws and Principles 

There are a few important original laws that Musopathy leverages upon.  Briefly, these include: 

Law of Musical ROI: “The Return on Investment (ROI) of Music and Musopathy is directly proportional to the extent of one’s association with either or both of them.”  This principle applies to almost any beneficial pursuits of life.  Typically musicians tend to enjoy many more benefits from music than listeners.  

Law of Entertainment vs Research Paradox: “The more entertaining the music is, the harder it is for health research.”  To be aesthetically and intellectually engaging, music has to often be sophisticated but that makes breaking down and studying its various components all the more challenging.  This was the trigger for Musopathy Medical Music. 

Law of Natural Tuning: “Every person has an inbuilt Pitch and Tempo range and the best way to prevent or minimise stress is to operate within it.”  This pitch and tempo has nothing to do with musical training and can be seen even while a person of normal health talks, walks, jogs or does anything unselfconsciously.

Benefits 

Preliminary observations and studies testify to the potential of Musopathy in both Clinical and Extra Clinical settings. 

• Clinical:  Combat Blood Pressure, High Sugar, Sleep Disorders, Respiratory Issues (which proved to be particularly useful for hundreds during the Covid pandemic), Muscular Tension, increase SpO2, release muscular tension of neck, shoulder etc, aid in Mood Management including Stress, Anxiety and Depression as well as Pain Management including Headaches of various types and Dental, Facial and Mandibular pains and aches, and promote Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and improve cognitive functions and prevent or combat cognitive decline. 
• Extra-Clinical: Musopathy can enhance overall Quality of Life (QoL) and promote individual, organisational and social Wellbeing by heightening self-awareness, improving focus, attentiveness, self discipline and mind control, boosting innovativeness and decision-making abilities, promoting team spirit and inter-personnel camaraderie, curbing mental fatigue and burnout,  building resilience against daily stress triggers,  enhancing energy levels and promoting both internal and inter-people peace and positivity.

Genesis 

Musopathy owes its origin as much to Music Therapy as it does to the fundamental Science and Math inherent in Music as a whole and captured by highly evolved genres of music in the world. Its theoretical principles were proposed in the mid-1990s but practical interventions were introduced more recently.  TBT – especially Nasal Tonation – was introduced during the Covid pandemic as a patient-friendly option to those that were physically incapable of following more strenuous breathing techniques that were being advocated by experts across the globe to ward off or mitigate the impact of the deadly Coronavirus.  It immediately proved to be accessible and successful, serving even ICU patients dealing with life-threatening conditions.  MANET has been recently introduced to help students and adults facing cognitive issues and to build creativity, decision-making abilities and leadership abilities, all of which are essential in corporate and social situations.

The Musopathy Mission is to take the health and wellness benefits that music bestows even to non-musician global populations, which number in billions.  Non-musician populations may be understood as those who have not had musical training or sufficient time or inclination to pursue it deeply.  In short, Musopathy neither demands knowledge or preference for music from its potential beneficiaries nor does it attempt to teach music to them, making it accessible to almost everyone.  Equally significantly, Musopathy also draws from Breathing Techniques, Meditation, Mindfulness and other healthy practices to potentially offer multifold benefits to practitioners. 

This does not automatically translate to TBT being better than the above practices.  In reality, various people may prefer one of these methods over the others, based on their natural inclinations and comfort zones.  

Principal activities

• Analyse and apply the fundamental universal scientific and mathematical principles embedded in music, in contrast to the conventional approach in Music Therapy, which seeks to provide personalised health benefits to relevant populations. 
• Conduct research into auro‑neural, hormonal, and physiological responses in a rigorous way and document outcomes so they can be tested, replicated and accepted alongside biochemical medicine.
• Conduct studies across humans, animals, plants and even micro‑organisms and cells by systematically isolating, varying and/or combining core musical parameters. 
• Explore complementary or alternative approaches for physiological, psychological or neurodevelopmental and neurological disorders with fewer side effects than current options. 
• Develop an understanding and explore the various health applications of the 3 principal aspects of Musopathy.

Research and Courses

Musopathy is an exciting area for original research with vast therapeutic, commercial and social potential.  The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi has pioneered a full fledged Musopathy MS and PhD program to enable Musopathy research on several fronts.  Aspiring Musopathists need to carry out rigorous research in these and other areas to explore its full potential.  

A Musopathist may be defined as “A person with a Health Science Degree plus a Musopathy degree from IIT or successful completion of an Exam based Musopathy Certificate Course offered by the Musopathy Foundation or by its collaborating institutions”.