Basic studies on musical emotion, and music therapy

Abstract

In recent years the study of musical affect and emotion has been developing in various ways. This field is connected with music therapy, which puts sounds and music to practical use for people suffering from illness or impediment. One of the main reasons for using music is that it has therapeutic value as ``a regulator of emotion'' for listeners. This paper is an attempt to review the present state of research on both musical emotion and music therapy, and to comment on their mutual relevance from the view point of music psychology. First, we review music therapy research; then we touch on the mutual relation of the two fields. A review of empirical studies of musical emotion follows. We discuss then several theories of induced emotions in music, and also highlight the primary issues of music therapy, and finally consider the problems in fundamental research that still await solution.