Harp music might help people who have heart trouble. The rhythms can cause hearts to beat more normally.
Heart Rhythms Similar to Music Rhythms
Illinois researchers are testing these healing properties of music, using theories based, in part, on the fascinating work of Harvard researchers that showed how the rhythms of healthy hearts may be similar to those found in classical music.
Atrial Fibrillation
One patient the theories were tested on was an 83-year-old woman with atrial fibrillation -- a fast, irregular heartbeat. The symptoms can include palpitations and fatigue to the point of sudden collapse.
Heartbeat Normalized
While she lay sedated, a musician played an Irish harp just a few feet away. The patient's heart rate slowed down and the beats maintained a regular pace while the music was playing, and for minutes afterward.