Spring 2026 Thoughts
A student of mine went to see their doctor, who knew they were now learning and loving, playing the cello. The doctor had been a chorister and prescribed this patient not medicine, but music.
This was intriguing to me because, in the fifth century, in Greece, musicians listened alongside doctors to what the patient was experiencing, then played or sang accordingly, using modes aligned with emotional and physical states to restore balance and health.
The cellist’s doctor took two different, central concerti in our repertoire as medicine: Walton’s supremely visionary cello concerto and Shostakovitch’s dynamic first concerto.
My CD of the Walton lives in my car, because I listen to it on long journeys. It was a gift from a guitarist friend who was listening to Record Review on Radio 3, and she bought it for me. It is Julian Lloyd Webber’s performance, and just thinking about it brings a tingle because I have to listen to it three times in a row. Once I’m in, I stay in, and it’s just become a thing for me. He inhabits it with so much depth, and the colours in the opening sparkle around the longing in the cello’s melody.
I love hearing players talk about their first experience with a piece or composer, and when I make suggestions for listening, I also feel excited, anticipating the thrill we all have when we hear a new piece of music.
In this over-fast world, make it make more sense by guarding time to listen, not in a rush, to music for your sanity, health, and personal growth. Do let me know which music lists you create and which states you aim to explore, like those fifth-century musicians.
Prescription for Musical Medicine Spring 2026
For calm, stillness, thoughtfulness, hope and warmth, all these can be found on YouTube.
Don’t consume while doing something else – you won’t hear (or really listen), and our bodies are receivers needing to be on the right wavelength.
Lie down on the floor with your knees up to protect your back (Alexander Technique) with no machines anywhere near you.
Take a few moments to wind down into your time and space, leaving the day behind, so you can tune into the music.
Take one a day, and when the cycle is complete, begin again, so you get to know the music.
- In a landscape – John Cage, 1948, solo piano
- When falling asleep – Richard Strauss from Four Last Songs sung by Jessye Norman (if you don’t know her singing, it’s utterly riveting)
- Being there – Tord Gustavsen Trio from the album At Home
- Spiegel im Spiegel – Arvo Pärt (Cello & Piano Version)
- Siciliano – Bach played by Beatrice Berrut
- Serenade for Strings – Dvorak 1st movement