Books on Music Therapy
Dr T V Sairam has authored many books on Music Therapy based on his pioneering research on the therapeutic aspects of the traditional Indian music system, Nada Yoga and Raga Chikitsa. Some of his books have been translated into Hindi and Tamil. The following are the list of Books:
1. What is Music (2004)
2. Raga Therapy (2004)
3. Medicinal Music (2004)
4. Music Therapy (2006)
5. Self Music Therapy (2006)
6. Dictionary of Music Therapy (2014)
7. Music Therapy Digest (2019)
8. Rog Nivarak Sangeeth – रोग निवारक संगीत (Hindi)
9. Idham Tharum Isai (Tamil)
10. Noy Theerkum Isai (Tamil)
What is Music?
In this book, the author giving a very good introduction about music, has brought out a comprehensive understanding of the different perspectives and roles of music in human lives. Apart from discussing the salient features and building blocks of music like, Pitch, Note, Rhythm and Melody, the various psychological, emotional, philosophical and scientific aspects of music are featured. A new insight on the combination of traditional and modern practices of modern therapeutic mechanism like Nada Yoga and Neuro musicology are of special mention. The book also presents a useful bibliography of the terms associated with music.
Year of Publication: 2004, reprints in 2016 & 2019
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Raga Therapy
Elaborates on the uses of various ragas in Carnatic and Hindustani music for therapeutic and healing purposes.
Raga Therapy is an eye opener to introduce music as therapy in health care and the author T V Sairam advocates Raga chikitsa, an Indian old tradition as a method to heal ourselves and heal others through the use of ragas to fight diseases of the body, mind and spirit. He also examines the various probable therapeutic components and the healing aspects of different ragas for specific illnesses which could be done by manipulation of the pace or gait by exploiting certain swaras or ragas through altering or their methods of rendering as in meend or glissando, staccato, iteration, progression etc. The book also reports recent researches made in support of these probable healing aspects in Ayurveda and Indian Classical music and the author stresses the need for undertaking scientific studies in these ragas to revive the ancient tradition of raga therapy and to bring to the forefront, the possible prophylactic and therapeutic role.
Year of Publication: 2004, reprint in 2011
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Medicinal Music
A sequel to What is Music
Recent years have witnessed an explosion of scientific research work on sound and its impact on the brain.
Thanks to the giant strides made in neurology, particularly after the development of sophisticated neuro-imaging techniques, a dedicated band of scientists, neurologists, psychologists and physicians have started rediscovering the power of sound vibrations, once acknowledged in ancient civilizations around the globe.
India has a long recognized tradition of Ayurveda, which has employed music. While legends exist on the power of ragas in producing fire, rain or even life or death , there are ancient texts such as the Raga Chikitsa which have dealt with the prophylactic and therapeutic role of ragas in curing many common ailments.
The book Medicinal Music is a humble attempt by the author to popularize the importance of Indian ragas. This work, it is hoped, will pave the way for creating awareness and interest among the general public.
Year of Publication: 2004
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Music Therapy
The Sacred and the Profane
Though music therapy is being increasingly talked about as a ‘future medicine’, its therapeutic application is archaic and time-tested. Traditions and rituals involved in shamanism and nada yoga have all increasingly employed rhythms and resonance for varying one’s consciousness levels aimed at alleviating the human sufferings, thereby paving way towards human welfare. In this new book, Music Therapy: The Sacred and the Profane, we have attempted to bring together the renowned and expert music therapists from all over the world under one roof. Each article contained in this compendium not only sings the glory of music but also makes us contemplate how much more we have to do in our day to day life to align with those healing rhythms and resonance, which promise a wonderful time ahead to all those who are prepared to listen to.
Year of Publication: 2006, reprint in 2016
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Self Music Therapy
Musings on Music Therapy
This book paves way for a new approach to life through music called ‘Self-Music Therapy’. It guides on the prudent use of sounds and rhythms to aim at one’s overall health and what one gains through music. Renowned author, Dr. T. V. Sairam through this book indicates by a compendium of different articles how music is capable of transforming our thinking processes, mood complexes and attitudinal traits into a healthy pattern.
Year of Publication: 2006, reprint in 2016
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Dictionary Of Music Therapy
With an introduction to Raga Therapy and Therapeutic Ragas
The psycho-acoustic role played by sound and music is well-known to mankind right from the days of our ancestors who hunted animals and lived in caves for their existence. The archaeological findings of flutes and drums, made of bones and skins of those animals hunted stand as a mute witness in museums around the world. The pre-Vedic and Vedic Indians had carved out a practical system, which used concepts and practices relating to acoustics and psychoacoustics. The birth of the new discipline music therapy is a post war American phenomenon born in its unsung bivouacs. This idea caught fire soon as people from various disciplines music musicology, medicine psychiatry psychology, rehabilitation yoga and spiritualism started pouring in to experiment at it. As a consequence what we call music therapy is no longer a close your eyes and listen to music subject but is a full discipline incorporating tenets of arts and science, brain and heart, thoughts and feelings, expectations and experiences illness and well-being and above all the past and the present. A dictionary of music Therapy adorning your hand now is the first of its kind in the world music therapy literature. It makes an attempt to tackle this multi-disciplinary subject to cater to the day to day needs of a scholar or a practitioner in music therapy from all parts and cultures of the world.
Year of Publication: 2014
Publisher: AGAM
Music Therapy Digest
Authors: T V Sairam, Gayathri Sankar
Music Therapy has at last, arrived in India – virtually with a bang – thanks to the opening of the Indian Music Therapy Association (IMTA) today at New Delhi.
As we celebrate the grand arrival of this ‘future medicine’ , we consider it our duty to introduce to our fellow-Indians the sweep and reaches of music therapy in the field of modern medicine.
This tiny booklet, MUSIC THERAPY DIGEST, containing a bibliography with the gist of the work, is intended to give a very broad idea to our reader – both layman as well as researcher – as to how music therapy has gracefully penetrated into several research laboratories, hospitals, nursing homes, day care centres, rehab units, hospices and whatnot – across the globe. It is indeed, remarkable that music therapy, which involves a very pleasant , workable and cost-effective experience with little or no side-effects, is just not intended for the ailing patients alone, but also for their physicians, care-givers and family-members!
Year of Publication: 2019
Publisher: IMTA
Rog Nivarak Sangeeth
रोग निवारक संगीत (Hindi)
Translated into Hindi by : Gayathri Anand
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
ROG NIVARAK SANGEET is the Hindi version of Dr Sairam’s devotion and dedication in discovering therapeutic elements found in Indian music traditions. It makes an attempt to unveil the mystery in music that works wonder in alleviating “non-musical” pain and sufferings in people.
Idham Tharum Isai
Tamil Translation of "Self Music Therapy" by Lakshmi Mohan
Chennai-based Nada Centre for Music Therapy is shaping hundreds of music professionals in various parts of the country into music therapists with that midas touch from Sairam -through his books, articles, lectures, workshops and conferences! Indian traditional music as a therapeutic intervention is the specialization – practised for over 3 decades by Sairam, who is known as ‘Father of Indian music Therapy’!
Year of Publication:
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
Noy Theerkum Isai
Tamil
The questions tackled by the Author in this book are:
How to appreciate the subtlest and deepest of expressions hidden in music, which are distinguishable from various other 64 art forms- known to Indian aestheric culture?
What are the interrealationships which exist between mind and body vis a vis music ?
How best one can use music therapy ?
What are the names of Indian Ragas which can be confidently applied for solving various human problems ?
Year of Publication:
Publisher: Nada Centre for Music Therapy
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