Download The Potential Use of Film Scores in Guided Imagery

The Potential Use of
Film Scores in
Guided Imagery Experiences
Brea Murakami
Aims of This Presentation
• Demonstrate the efficacy of imagery in
therapy
• Present history of Bonny Method of Guided
Imagery and Music
• Explore origins of film music and its uses today
• Give suggestions to implement film music into
guided imagery experiences
Imagery
• A mental function and lived experience that is
a dynamic, quasi-real, and psychophysiological process
Research
• Daselarr et al. (2010)
– Identified core imagery network in medial
preforntal cortex
– Planning, decision-making, personality
• Grunet et al. (2007)
– Imagery as rescripting tool for PTSD patients
– Less depression and anxiety after 6 months
Imagery and Music
• Music is a "pure" art form
– No set meanings, abstract
– Personal associations projected onto the music
• Music works through time
– Move between levels of consciousness fluidly
• Musical Complexity
– Multiple ideas expressed at once
– Personal Exploration
Bonny Method of
Guided Imagery and Music
• A music-oriented exploration of consciousness practiced in
psychotherapy and counseling settings
– Goals shared between the therapist (facilitator) and client (traveler)
– Music elicits spontaneous, non-directed images
• Possible client experiences:
– Emotional processing of psychological issues
– Symbolic life experiences
– Spiritual transcendence
• Stages of GIM Session
–
–
–
–
Opening relaxation
Bridge to deeper levels of consciousness
Heart of program in which traveler interacts with imagery
Return to normal consciousness
• Current GIM Repertoire
Efficacy of the Bonny Method
• Quantitative
– Jacobi and Eisenberg (2002)
• Lowered pain perception and distress in patients with
arthritis
– Bonde (2004)
• Improved self-understanding and emotional well-being
in breast cancer patients
• Qualitative
– Case studies give the essence of therapy
"Pure" Art Music vs. Film Scores
• Art music doesn't as clearly take advantage of
established musical meanings
– May be constrained by form
– Composers motivated by artistic vision, not
communicating an image
• Film Music and the Bonny Method:
– Both follow narrative action
– Both work on a subconscious, emotional level
– Support a visual experience
Film Scores
• Instrumental music that supports a film's story
• Often works on an emotional, subconscious
level
• Grew from operatic accompaniment
• Wagner's Leitmotifs: short musical passages
that characterize a person, place, or idea
– Can transform with a character throughout a film
– Rhythmic, harmonic, melodic changes
Styles of Film Scores
• 19th Century Romantic Style
– Full orchestra, lush texture
– Similar to classical reportoire
– Moby Dick Theme
• 20th Century Modern Style
– More chromaticism, atonality
– Digital music = new timbres, expanded associations
– The Matrix
• Non-Western Styles
– Speak to ethnically diverse clientele
– Memoirs of a Geisha
• Hybrid Styles
– Blending for flexible, customizable sounds
– WALL-E
Film Music and Semiotics
• Composers work to communicate specific
emotional ideas through musical symbols
– Research ethnic, historic, geographic, stylistic
elements
– Out of Africa
• Tagg and Clarida (2003)
– Miami Vice theme song = chase, action, rebelliousness
– Reliably evokes general ideas, open to individual
interpretation
Playing the Psychology
• Film music does not illustrate, but completes the
psychological effect
• Reflects the composer's emotional reaction to
film
• Synced with dramatic content
• Underlines core relationships between different
situations and people
Building GIM Programs
• Bonny originally built music programs
intuitively
– Top-down approach
• Film music is built on meaningful systems
– Cataloged by meaning and situation
– Bottom-up approach
• Therapists can tailor individual programs
• More evidence-based than intuition
Film Music and GIM Requirements
• Film music meets Bonny's original musical requirements
– Depth of experience
• Supports complicated drama
– Variety in color and form
• 19th century, 20th century, non-western styles
– Harmonic and Melodic Complexity
• Leitmotifs, orchestration
• Additional Pros:
– Hybrid styles mix digital, chromatic, and ethnic styles within
familiar tonalities
– Shorter excerpts for transitions, flexibility
Challenges of Film Scores in GIM
• Some scores are too successful
– Instantly recognizable, restrains imagery
– Must take traveler age and experiences into account
• Ambient scores
– Don't propel images forward
– May serve as transition or plateau
• Relative length of film tracks
– Solutions: digital blending
– Opening and closing tracks generally longer
• Only one recorded version available
– But, best expresses artistic intentions
• Written scores difficult to obtain for analysis
– But, film itself offers another mode of analysis
Future Recommendations
• Increase therapeutic familiarity with film
scores
• Research into film music’s effects on imagery
• Share ideas with MT community to receive
feedback