Before musicians play a composition, they carefully tune their instruments, because they know that such a precise process guarantees high music quality. Human attunement
The human body is the ultimate musical instrument, life is the music.
Our thoughts, emotions, interactions with others and the way we express ourselves are all manifestations of a vibratory nature and can therefore be compared to the art of music: expressing and interacting in a harmonious way is the result of inner balance and very similar to the fine – voices of an instrument. In my work as a Sound Healer I have experimented with different techniques and instruments. Of these, my set of Pythagorean tuning forks is one of my favorites. They are gentle and powerful, subtle yet highly effective, with the ability to affect the nervous system at a very deep level. The musical intervals of these tuning forks are based on Pythagorean tuning, that is, the single frequency of each note of the scale is derived from the Harmonic Series. The harmonic (or overtone) series can be considered the “natural” musical system because it reflects the laws of physics and acoustics, and expresses specific relationships found in nature.
The human body is also based on this system. To explain one of the reasons why I find working with these instruments so important, I have to delve into a technical explanation and I will keep it as short and simple as possible.
Think about this: we are constantly surrounded by music, whether it’s the music we choose or the music we don’t choose. For most people, the majority of the music they listen to is Western music. Without going into deep technical details, almost all Western music performed on fixed-tuned instruments (keyboards and guitars) uses a tonal system called Equal Temperament, which determines the tuning of each note of the scales used. This tuning system is the result of years of experimenting with easily building, tuning and playing instruments with a fixed tuning, such as keyboards. Human attunement
The loss in this process is that the relationships between the notes of the scale (ratios) had to be “tempered” (hence the name “temperament”), that is, all the notes had to be adjusted (or changed) in order to fit into a scale consists of twelve equally spaced notes (hence the name ‘equal’). This means that, in terms of frequency, the distance between a C and C# is the same as the distance between a C# and a D. The distance between D and D# is the same as the distance between D# and E… and so on. This tuning system is very practical, but it is also far from a pure harmonic tuning, based on the laws of acoustics.
The Pythagorean tuning forks are harmonically tuned using mathematical ratios and therefore give our nervous system the opportunity to experience these natural ratios in the form of sound. I like to think of them as a relief after being stuck indoors for a very long time. They are named after Pythagoras, the ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician who is also credited with an early study of harmonics and intervals in Western culture.
Of course, music is far from the main cause of our nervous system’s problems. The whole modern lifestyle affects us and puts us under pressure. In fact, more often than not, music helps us, at least from an emotional point of view. Nevertheless, I believe that the tuning problem is something that needs to be addressed because it is something that most people don’t think about. We all know that sitting in front of a computer for hours, not exercising, eating poorly, etc. are all harmful habits. Human attunement
But how often do we think that the music we love is actually, from a physical point of view, out of tune?
Or how often do we think about all the square corners our nervous system encounters every day in our living spaces?
How many square corners do you see when you are in nature?
We often tackle big problems, like air or water pollution, and we don’t notice other things that we take for granted, as if they have no effect.
The nervous system is our interface with the physical world, an incredibly refined and beautiful instrument that deserves a good tune as often as possible! Human attunement
As a musician and composer I also use Equal Temperament and I am aware that many factors contribute to the quality of someone’s music. Intention is probably one of the most important aspects that can contribute to the nourishing and healing quality of a piece of music. In this short article I am not trying to preach against any specific attunement system, but rather focus on the need we all have to give our nervous system a balancing experience from time to time, in order to maintain presence and awareness.
If you are interested in sound therapy, check out my Sound Therapy Practitioner online training.
Copyright 2017/24 – Simone Vitale