Relaxation Effects of Auricular Vibration Stimuli Synchronized with Music

Abstract

When people listen to music, vibratory stimuli that are synchronized with sounds enhance the affective effects of music. We investigated the effects of vibratory stimuli on relaxation. Vibratory stimuli were delivered to the cymba concha, an auricular part, concentrating on the vagus nerves. Five vibration patterns were prepared based on music that evoked relaxation. A user study involving nine participants found that they felt more relaxed under the condition in which a vibration stimulus was generated from sounds lowered by one octave than under the condition with no vibratory stimuli applied. This effect was more prominent for one of the two musical sounds tested.