Sound healing takes root in Pittsburgh
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Monique Mead hosts regular sound baths at her studio in Shadyside. Photo: Courtesy of Carnegie Mellon University
Sound healing is catching on in Pittsburgh, and self-care seekers say it's more than just noise.
Why it matters: Sound baths, a form of guided meditation using layered instruments like gongs, singing bowls and chimes, aren't just a wellness trend here — they're the subject of academic study.
- Early research shows the practice may help ease anxiety and stress and improve sleep, similar to music therapy.
State of play: World-renowned Pittsburgh violinist Monique Mead is working alongside local research institutions to expand the science behind sound baths and train students to take the lead.
Zoom in: Mead, who is also Carnegie Mellon School of Music's director of music entrepreneurship, started hosting sound baths three years ago as a practitioner at the Awareness and Wellness Center in Shadyside — enticing maxed-out minds of all ages.
- Once a skeptic, Mead attended her first sound bath in Mexico a decade ago. She says the deep, droning tones of rubber mallets on singing bowls quickly quieted her racing mind.
- "It was a very powerful experience as a musician to realize that it can have that immediate effect on the mind," Mead tells Axios.
How it works: Participants at Mead's studio unwind on mats or bean bags as she leads a live, hour-long sound bath using violin, quartz crystal singing bowls, gongs and percussion to "bathe" the room in a sea of calming sounds.
- "People respond in many ways," she says. "Some say they feel lighter afterward, others enter a deep relaxation or feel a sense of 'timelessness,' and some cry or process grief."
The intrigue: A group of CMU students launched the on-campus Scottie Sound Bath two years ago after attending Mead's sessions — making it the first university in the U.S. to establish an in-house sound bath program, she says.
- Mead's guidance helped launch a similar program at the University of Pittsburgh, which will fuel research into topics like sound healing's affect on students' test scores.
Reality check: Sound baths, drawn from centuries-old Eastern traditions, have yet to gain a solid scientific footing and are not often used in clinical settings.
- Recent peer-reviewed studies show possible mental health and cardiovascular benefits from singing bowls — but call for more research.
Yes, but: American medicine is already embracing the fundamentals of sound healing through music therapy.
- A number of hospitals use music to ease pre-surgery nerves, and research shows listening to music may even speed up recovery, among other benefits.
By the numbers: A Scottie Sound Bath co-founder partnered with a Pitt Public Health researcher last year to survey 200 participants.
- After one session, reported stress levels dropped from 76% to 22%, and exhaustion levels fell from 78% to 28%, per CMU.
What's next: Mead is creating a sound bath app with guided sessions.
- She occasionally leads large-scale sound baths at venues like Heinz Chapel and will host an outdoor session in Schenley Park on June 29.
If you go: Register for a sound bath at the Awareness and Wellness Center, 5541 Walnut St. in Shadyside. Sessions are $35.