Have you ever been really angry, and you put on an ‘angry’ song and felt better? Or maybe you were feeling blue, and someone said, “Here’s a happy song to cheer you up!” and you thought, “Nope, not helping!”
As we well know, music is an emotional experience, and using music to influence emotions is nothing new. But how do we do this effectively? What is it about the above examples that makes one piece of music helpful and the other not?
In the first example, you were angry. You needed to feel angry. The song mirrored what you were feeling, and you felt validated. In the second example, you were sad. The other person’s suggestion of a happy song was well-intended, but they made the common mistake of thinking that your emotions could be immediately changed by a song that reflected the emotion they thought you needed. We need time to process our emotions; we can’t just skip from sad to happy because someone puts on a happy song. There are a lot of emotions in between. This is where the iso principle comes in.
The iso principle is a foundational music therapy concept and method of intervention that originated as a means for mood management. Applied here, it means that you start where you are: if you’re angry, start with angry. Construct your playlist with the end emotion in mind: if you’re aiming to go from angry to calm, select songs that gradually take you from one emotion to the other. Angry, then somewhat angry, then angry with perhaps a touch of humor, then not very angry/approaching calm/acceptance, then calm. It’s important to note that this progression of songs and emotions is vital – listening exclusively to ‘angry/sad/whatever emotion you’re experiencing’ songs may only serve to intensify and sustain the emotion instead of processing and moving through it.
I’ve always had trouble turning off my brain, so in college, after learning about the iso principle, I created a playlist to help me wind down. The song selections have changed some over the years, but the concept is the same. Over the course of 17 songs (the last song is repeated several times), the intention is to go from awake/alert to a meditative, calm, restful (and ultimately sleeping) state. In all the years I’ve used this playlist, it rarely fails me (and when it does, there’s usually a darn good reason).
Music is a powerful tool, and exploring techniques like this makes our listening experience that much more effective and personal. Try it out and see what you think. In the interest of clarity, I do need to note that creating a playlist like this and using music to influence your mood doesn’t make you a music therapist. But it does make you an informed, aware individual using music for your benefit, and I think that’s awesome. Music is an integral part of most people’s lives, and I say the more music, the better.
The research on this (music, mood, emotion, the iso principle) is extensive and fascinating. Check it out! This post was inspired in part by an article in Music Therapy Perspectives entitled ‘Use of the Iso Principle as a Central Method in Mood Management: A Music Psychotherapy Clinical Case Study.’
Happy listening!
Heiderscheit, A. & Madson, A. (2015). Use of the Iso Principle as a Central Method in Mood Management: A Music Psychotherapy Clinical Case Study. Music Therapy Perspectives, 33(1), 45-52.
