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In this conversation, Dr. Victoria Williamson discusses the profound impact of music on the brain, exploring its role in memory, emotional connection, and cognitive enhancement. She highlights the significance of music from infancy through adulthood and introduces the concept of binaural beats as a tool for sound therapy. The discussion also covers her company, Audicin, which aims to provide sound solutions for wellbeing and productivity, backed by scientific research. Stay in touch with Dr. Victoria and get a free trial of Audicin at this link. Takeaways Music has been a part of human life for millennia. Newborns can remember melodies they heard in utero. Music is deeply tied to our emotional experiences. The brain processes music in a unique way that enhances memory. Binaural beats can help synchronize brain waves for various states of mind. Music can be used as a mnemonic device for better memory retention. The right kind of background music can enhance focus and productivity. Nature sounds in music can significantly reduce stress levels. Research is ongoing to explore the benefits of music therapy for various conditions. Watch on YouTube Episode transcript Cheryl McColgan (00:00.868)Hey everyone, welcome to the Heal and Rosh Ro podcast. I am so excited. I I think I say this when I'm talking to every guest, but that's because I only choose people that I really want to talk to for the most part. So today I have with me Dr. Victoria Williamson, and she is basically her life's work is all about music in the brain. And this is a topic that really gets me excited because I was a musician most of my time throughout school. I played saxophone for many years, also sang. and then my interest in psychology and the brain. And at the time, even way back when, when I was in school at this point, there was a lot of research on the really positive effects in a child's developing brain with using music. So I know that that research is out here, but what I'm really excited to talk to Dr. Williamson about is how they're finding that music also works wonders on the adult brain. So very long introduction there, Dr. Victoria, but I kind of wanted to let you know where I'm coming from as well. So welcome and could you just give people some background on how you got into this work? What sparked your interest in music? Dr Victoria Williamson (01:04.371)Well, thank you so much for inviting me. It's my absolute pleasure to be with you today. We share a lot in our background, you and me. So I paid for school teaching music. I'm a guitarist, classical guitarist, but I love all instruments. I love all forms of music, impossible to name a favorite. But I studied psychology. That's what I was drawn towards was understanding human behavior and I was going to school in the sort of late 90s, early 2000s, where neuroscience was blowing up. And we were getting all these cool studies where you could see actual pictures of the brain working. And that was just magnetic to me. when I found out I could combine my two loves, I could combine psychology and music. That was it. That was my pathway right there. And it mattered not that I had to study for so many years and have this kind of uncertain academic life. Cheryl McColgan (01:57.112)haha Dr Victoria Williamson (02:01.587)because you follow your passion, right? And that's what you're all about. So we absolutely share that as well. So my pathway through research always clung to this idea that music is transformative in human life. And we've been making music as a species for as long as records exist. The oldest musical instruments we've ever found on planet Earth are 40 ,000 years old. And these are very intricate bone flutes. They're carved from the bone of a vulture wing, and they use the same musical scale that we use in modern folk music. Cheryl McColgan (02:42.082)That's absolutely amazing.
Spend an hour with Sinéad and our guest, Victoria Williamson, as we take a stroll through the stories that have shaped one of the most prolific and imaginative children's authors writing today. Victoria's work ranges from emotionally charged stories for older children and young teens, right down to fantastical adventures for younger readers, never failing to enthral and captivate, and it was a pleasure to sit down with her and chat all things story. We talk about the 'hero's journey', her career as a teacher, the many far-flung places her work has brought her to, her commitment to social justice and other causes close to her heart, and what authorly ambitions she has yet to achieve. Come and join us, and find out how Victoria is Storyshaped.Find Victoria online via her websiteBooks mentioned in this week's episode include Victoria's own:The Boy With the Butterfly MindThe Fox Girl and the White GazelleHagstormWar of the WindThe Pawnshop of Stolen DreamsAnd the stories that shaped her include:The Hobbit, by JRR TolkienLord of the Rings, by JRR TolkienThe work of Stephen KingThe work of Monica DickensThe Tripods, by John ChristopherThe Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, aged 13 3/4, by Sue TownsendThe Hardy Boys (and later iterations), originally created and written by Franklin W. DixonMaps, atlases, and books about travelThe work of Jane Austen, the Brontes, Thomas Hardy, Charles DickensHarry Potter, by JK Rowling (these books set Victoria on the road to becoming a children's writer)Treasures of the Snow, by Patricia St JohnThe Chrysalids, by John WyndhamThe work of MR JamesVictorian Gothic Stories and Ghost stories (in general)Rivet Boy, by Barbara HendersonEuro Spies, by Lindsay LittletonHaarville, by Justin DaviesInto the Faerie Hill, by HS NorupThe Silver Road, by Sinéad O'HartTV influences include:Star TrekOur podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ieIn the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Hey hey hey! Welcome back to this week's Author Interview. In this episode, Victoria Williamson, joins us to talk about her latest novel, War of the Wind I chatted to Victoria about her always writing, how being a teacher helped her as a writer, and more. Victoria was a great guest to have on the show and we are very grateful she was able to join us on the show. ***COMPETITION*** If you want to be in with a chance of winning a copy of War of the Wind head over to Twitter and follow @BigKidsBookClub. Send us a tweet using the hashtag #WindComp and tell us of a unique way the wind could help our day to day lives? (UK residents only) The competition closes midnight on 7th October
Music is central to the human experience. We celebrate with it, commiserate through it - often some of our strongest memories are tied to it. On All in the Mind this week, how music affects us from the womb through the rest of our lives - and what new research tells us about its measurable impact on our mental health. Plus, the 'plink' test - how our musical memories can identify a track from just a sliver of song, and the power of music to shape our emotions.
This month Stuart and Guy are joined by music psychologist Victoria Williamson to discuss the power of music and the amazing ways it can physically reshape our brains. In our chat we discuss the positive impacts of music on our mental and physical health, the musical genius of Brian Wilson and David Bowie, and the perennial puzzle of what causes ‘earworms'. Victoria also talks us through the songs that inspired her own personal playlist - exclusively compiled for this show and which you can enjoy in the link below.Victoria's Spotify Playlist - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4D2viki23HGMgTNB0ogt9b?si=dbdb84c9ef4b46a7Playlist blog post - http://musicpsychology.co.uk/10-records-music-from-my-life/Dr Victoria Williamson is an independent authority, scholar and consultant on the psychology of music; how music is processed by the brain and the ways in which music impacts on our minds and behaviours.Victoria was most recently based in the music school within the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Switzerland, though her research and teaching interests cross the interdisciplinary boundary between music and psychology. She is trained in both academic disciplines having completed her Masters in the Psychology of Music at Sheffield and her PhD in the Psychology of Musical Memory at the University of York (2008). Victoria has published research looking at multiple aspects of music understanding and impact, including memory skills, brain activations, sleep and wellbeing. Her work has been covered widely in international media including by the BBC, TED, the Conversation and the Wall Street Journal, and she has given presentations to worldwide universities, festivals, medical professionals, public groups, radio and TV, and schools. She is the author of 'You Are The Music' (Icon Books) and the webmaster of the popular educational blog http://musicpsychology.co.ukMusic on My Mind is a project that aims to connect people through their shared love of rock and pop music and encourage positive discussion around men's mental health. The project is supported by the National Lottery Community Fund and led by Reel Connections in partnership with Norfolk Library Service and the 12th Man, a campaign that aims to help all men talk more openly about mental health.
This episode is with Dr Victoria Williamson - an independent authority, scholar and consultant on the psychology of music. Victoria is particularly interested in the relationship between music and wellbeing and is a regular contributor to radio and television, in addition to her own academic research. She is also the author of ‘You Are The Music: How Music Reveals What It Means To Be Human' published in 2014. We talk about: -the scope and reach of music psychology -the global phenomenon of ‘earworms' -her research into amusia (‘tone deafness') and it's implications for singing. -the difference between congenital amusia and acquired amusia -the relationship between music and wellbeing -why the human voice is so powerful -therapeutic uses of singing in different healthcare settings -why ‘Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay' is her favourite all-time song Victoria website/blog https://musicpsychology.co.uk/ Victoria's TED talk on Music and Memory https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljbGL1uzl6k Podcast playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1TWeFKowQ9tCSOEPQ8xmvQ?si=FoCok6QRRfSIyfMMoFtcNQ Follow James on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook.
Katie and Dr Radha are joined by Dr Victoria Williamson to chat about the effect that music can have on our minds. They chat about why we listen to music and how it's helped us through in lockdown.
On today's episode we sit down with elite British bobsledder and former track cyclist, Victoria Williamson. During the episode, Victoria will share with us her journey from the velodrome to the ice, as well as her secrets for peak performance and how to overcome major challenges, in order to achieve your life goals.
An exploration of why and how music can exert a powerful effect on our emotions. Why does one particular collection of notes make us want to get up and dance, and another calm us down? Edwina Pitman hears from record producer turned neuroscientist Daniel Levitin about how our brains process music and from psychologist Victoria Williamson about how we react to the memories that sounds trigger. Renowned Hollywood film composer Brian Tyler demonstrates how he creates music that reflects the many shades of emotional grey between happy and sad, and Emmanuel Jal, the South Sudanese-Canadian musician and former child soldier, reveals how music helped him come to terms with the trauma of his childhood. Guests: Bryan Tyler - film composer and conductor Dr Daniel Levitin - neuroscientist, and Founding Dean of Arts & Humanities at The Minerva Schools at KGI and author of This Is Your Brain On Music Dr Victoria Williamson - Lecturer in Music Psychology at the University of Sheffield and author of You Are The Music Rob Wood - founder of Music Concierge Bibi Heal - opera singer Emmanuel Jal - singer and musician Presented and produced by Edwina Pitman Editor: Andy Smith
Helen Adams from the Geography department at King's College London and Victoria Williamson from the King’s Centre for Military Health Research, help preview the Resilience to Transformation Workshop taking place today, which aims to improve the response to violence against women and its impact on mental health.
Season 3 is here! To kick off the coming weeks, we have Victoria Williamson tell us a little bit about music and the brain. Enjoy!
How can music make us cry? Why does our favourite piece give us the shivers? And why, when we're feeling down, do we enjoy nothing more than a good wallow in sad music? Is it something in the music - or something in ourselves? From Schubert to Stravinsky and Mahler to Miley Cyrus - Tom Service is joined by music psychology expert Dr Victoria Williamson to investigate how music can tug on our heartstrings like nothing else. Rethink music, with The Listening Service.
Dr Victoria Williamson is the Director of Music and Wellbeing. Laura is the Vice Chancellor’s Fellow for Music at the University of Sheffield and teaches on the MA course in Psychology of Music. Dr Williamson introduces and outlines the aims of Music and Wellbeing, as well as giving an overview of some of the projects already underway.
Tom Sutcliffe talks to the celebrated composer, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies on the eve of the premier of his tenth symphony. His latest work creates a musical structure based on architectural proportions, inspired by the 17th century architect Francesco Borromini. Waldemar Januszczak turns to the 18th century and Rococo for his inspiration, and looks at how this artistic movement spread from painting and interior design, to music and theatre. The environment, both built and natural, is key to Trevor Cox's study of sound as he listens intently to the cacophony around us. While the psychologist Victoria Williamson explores our relationship with music, including why we're prone to earworms, certain rhythms repeating endlessly in our heads. Producer: Katy Hickman.
Music Psychologist Victoria Williamson is an expert on earworms – songs that stick in our heads. In this episode of Composer Quest, she reveals her findings on what makes a melody sticky. Vicky also answers my other pressing music psychology questions: Why do babies have an innate sense of rhythm? Why did Clive Wearing, a severe amnesiac, retain his ability to perform music? When did humans start playing instruments? Also in this episode, you’ll get to hear the sound of the world’s oldest instrument, and a never-before-released Charlie song. Enjoy!