We rely on being able to plug something into a home outlet and not fry it with too much voltage. Similarly, two musicians who “tune” their instruments independently expect to be able to play together and have it sound good. This is due to the — mostly invisible — “standards” that people rely on, whether electrical, musical, or otherwise.
Pressing the “A” key in the middle of a piano keyboard delivers a note that vibrates 440 times per second; also known as 440 Hertz. A guitar player, using a tuner, orients the instrument around the same tuning.
However… if you search for “healing music” online, you will very quickly come across music that has various numbers like “432 Hz” in the title. This means that the song was performed by a musician who diverged from the “standard” way of tuning, and instead of 440 vibrations per second on that “middle A” note, tuned slightly lower, vibrating 432 times per second. It can be subtle, unless two musicians using different tuning standards try to play together. In that case it would sound obviously “out of tune”. But if everyone has tuned to the same standard, it will sound fine.
The types of music you will find in the alternately tuned healing music often comes with intriguing titles along the lines of “Crystal Whale Sunset Healing 432hz Abundance Vibration”. You may start to pick up that people releasing music in alternate tunings are suggesting that there is something “there” for you, that’s not available in “standard” (440 Hz) tuning.
Is that true? Today I’m going to do 2 similar improvisations, played with the guitar tuned at 440 Hz, and then at 432 Hz. Do you like one more than the other? Does one feel more “healing”?
In my view, healing music is a combination of the sound, the performer, and the listener. The right music, for the right person, at the right time is your healing music. So, perhaps it’s worth seeking out some music in alternate tunings. But I think it’s best not to believe something is good for you because someone said it should be, but to decide based on your experience, your truth.
Fair warning: which ever one you listen to first will become your ear’s “reference pitch”, and the other recording will likely sound out of tune. You might need some time between listening to the first and second recordings.
Here is the 440 Hz recording:
Here is the 432 Hz recording:
To your health,
–Alex
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