It was a heartbreaking sight—legendary singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, once a vibrant force of musical nature, rendered silent and immobile by a devastating stroke in 2015. The prognosis looked grim. “When she got back from the hospital, she couldn’t walk and she couldn’t talk,” recounted her close friend, the esteemed neuroscientist Daniel Levitin. “And the doctors were so pessimistic about her recovery, they hadn’t scheduled any follow-ups.”
But Levitin, a leading expert on the neuroscience of music, refused to accept this bleak fate for his dear friend and collaborator. Drawing upon his deep understanding of music’s impact on the brain, he swiftly devised a personalized music therapy program tailored to Mitchell’s unique tastes and needs. The results were nothing short of remarkable.
The Healing Power of a Custom Playlist
Levitin’s innovative approach hinged on a stroke of serendipity—he and Mitchell had previously compiled a CD of her favorite songs for a Starbucks project called Artist’s Choice. This eclectic mix, ranging from Debussy to Marvin Gaye, Leonard Cohen to Graham Nash’s Our House (written about Mitchell herself), formed the backbone of her recovery soundtrack.
Music you like increases dopamine, and dopamine is the neurochemical that motivates you to do things.
– Daniel Levitin
As Levitin explains in his groundbreaking new book, Music As Medicine, the key to effective music therapy lies in personal resonance. “If you’re talking about therapeutic effects, you have to like the music,” he emphasizes. “If you don’t like it, your walls are going to go up, your cortisol levels will spike.” By immersing Mitchell in the songs that stirred her soul, Levitin aimed to flood her system with dopamine—a neurochemical that galvanizes motivation and sparks neuroplasticity.
Music Therapy’s Expanding Horizons
Mitchell’s extraordinary progress—regaining her ability to walk and talk through a combination of traditional therapy and Levitin’s musical intervention—is just one compelling case study in a burgeoning field of research. From Parkinson’s disease to Alzheimer’s, PTSD to chronic pain, music therapy is demonstrating profound potential across a spectrum of neurological and psychological conditions.
- Parkinson’s patients can overcome freezing of gait by walking to rhythms that match their natural pace.
- Music’s capacity to evoke memories and emotions can temporarily “awaken” those with advanced dementia.
- Pleasurable music triggers the release of endogenous opioids, providing a measure of relief for chronic pain sufferers.
While music is not a panacea, Levitin suggests it can serve as a potent adjunct to traditional medical interventions. “Nobody’s claiming that if you listen to Abba, your headache’s going to go away,” he clarifies. “But if you’ve got chronic back pain or are recovering from surgery, music can get you part of the way there, so you can reduce the dose of medication.”
A Melodic Shield Against Cognitive Decline?
Perhaps most tantalizing are the implications for staving off age-related cognitive impairment. While music cannot prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s, active engagement—especially playing an instrument—may help delay the emergence of symptoms by building “cognitive reserve,” much like how physical exercise strengthens an athlete.
Music engages every part of the brain that we know of. It invokes memory, emotion, reward systems, eye-hand coordination, planning. There’s a lot going on there, and even if you’re not a professional musician or particularly good at it, you get all the benefits.
– Daniel Levitin
So pick up that dusty guitar, join a community choir, or just put on your favorite album and sing along at the top of your lungs. As Mitchell’s remarkable journey illustrates, the right music at the right time can be transformative. “We realise this other person has expressed our feelings in this beautiful work of art,” reflects Levitin. “It is the language of emotion.” And, perhaps, the key to unlocking the brain’s remarkable capacity for resilience and regeneration.
