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Music including pop was allowed a free rein during the past two decades in Afghanistan, with local television even showing a 'Pop Idol' talent contest equivalent
Music including pop was allowed a free rein during the past two decades in Afghanistan, with local television even showing a 'Pop Idol' talent contest equivalent AFP / Justin TALLIS

Music as a form of care is now being widely viewed as a key tool to help deal with many physical and mental disorders like reducing pain, anxiety, fatigue, and depression. It can also be used as a strategic agent in increasing motivation and self-esteem; reducing muscle tension; decreasing anxiety, improving self-awareness; and strengthening one's coping skills.

Recent reports have shown that music therapists from all over the world serve over 1.6 million people per year across various settings—a figure that is forecasted to continue to grow annually. This expected surge can be attributed to media coverage, word of mouth, and research.

In the US alone, there are around 26,651 registered Music Therapists—tracing its early roots to World War I, when community musicians of all types–both amateur and professional–went to Veterans' hospitals around the country to play for the thousands of veterans suffering both physical and emotional trauma from the war.

Musical therapy proponent and musician Bill Protzmann has long been fascinated with the power of music and how it can be used as an effective tool to help heal the body's ills and woes.

Bill Protzmann
Bill Protzmann Bill Protzmann

He says, "I have long been driven by my objective to change the world through music. It's like unused medicine—where people know about its potential but have no idea how to use it. There is just more waiting to be discovered under the surface."

Originally gaining popularity as a piano virtuoso, Bill has been performing for over three decades now. Through his performances on stage, Bill was able to see the power that music yields over people. "I have long been fascinated at how an audience would respond to a musical performance—prompting me to dwell further and find out how it works."

Bill further explains that music therapy has now evolved from just playing at Veteran's Hospitals to being used to help deal with autism, dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, and Parkinson's Disease, among others. However, he also points out that these are all in experimental stages, "All of these are still clinical and are not yet fully scalable. What we need to do is figure out how to use music as an effective healing tool."

The very same fascination led Bill to establish Music Care Inc., a company that openly promotes the use of music for physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health care—essentially viewed as the body and mind's four core areas.

"Music Care Inc. is guided by its mission of aiming to change yourself holistically. The company has a unique approach that utilizes self-evident education to provide you and your team with tools to consistently perform with passion—triggering both engagement and relief via music," Protzmann said.

The company's approach to healing proves to be timely and strategic as the latest studies have shown that music activates cognitive, motor, and speech centers in the brain through accessing shared neural systems. The report also points out that listening to and playing music increases the body's production of the antibody immunoglobulin A and natural killer cells — the cells that attack invading viruses and boost the immune system's effectiveness. Music also reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

Bill shares a key piece of advice—a lesson he has picked up from this fascinating journey he has embarked on, "The actual key to achieving one's state of bliss falls on one's feeling of contentment. When you are at peace with everything else in this world, then you would be experiencing bliss."

In line with this, he further explains the role of music in finding peace with yourself, "Music is the 'all-in' complement to things. What we do not realize is how it helps us deal with things and help improve our emotions—we listen to sad music to help us relieve our sadness; we listen to joyous music to spend our joyous feeling, and we listen to angry music to transform our anger into something more useful."

And this also sums up the unique healing approach that Music Care Inc. has embraced and now openly promotes—aiming to create a better understanding of music and realize its effectiveness as a strategic tool for change.