The Psychological Benefits from Reconceptualizing Music-Making as Mindfulness Practice.
Matthew Steinfeld, Judson A. Brewer
Medical problems of performing artists June 1, 2015 DOI: 10.21091/mppa.2015.2014 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 11 |
| Key points | Proposes that mindfulness meditation can serve as a model for understanding the phenomenology of music-making and flow states, with implications for music pedagogy. |
Abstract
While the music psychology and education literatures have devoted considerable attention to how musical instrumentalists practice their instruments, less formal scholarly attention has been given in consideration of what it means to maintain a musical "practice" over time and across context. In this paper, the practice of mindfulness meditation is used as heuristic, arguing for a view of mindfulness meditation as a formalized de-specialization of the infinite number of other activities with which people can achieve mindfulness. Sitting meditation, requiring of one to observe the contents of their mind unmediated, can serve as a useful model for the musician in understanding the phenomenology of the music-making process and the "flow" states that can result from an embodied musical practice. Finally, reconceptualizing music-making as a mindfulness practice is considered with psychological and pedagogical implications relevant for developing musicians.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- The Relationships Between Music Performance Anxiety and the Mindfulness Levels of Music Teacher Candidates International Education Studies September 26, 2021
- Mindfulness meditation increases interictal epileptiform discharges in meditation-naïve surgical epilepsy patients. Epilepsia June 16, 2026
- Mindfulness for Singers: A Mixed Methods Replication Study Music & Science September 16, 2021
- Comparison of music stimuli to support mindfulness meditation Psychology of Music November 11, 2019
Cites 8
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- What about the “Self” is Processed in the Posterior Cingulate Cortex? Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- Effortless awareness: using real time neurofeedback to investigate correlates of posterior cingulate cortex activity in meditators' self-report Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- Silent illumination: a study on Chan (Zen) meditation, anxiety, and musical performance quality Psychology of Music October 10, 2007
and 3 more in the library