Peace Through Music in the Classroom

By Dudley & Dean Evenson



We are musicians who for the past twenty-five years have been producing peaceful, instrumental music combined with natural sounds. One spring afternoon a few years ago, we received a bulging packet in the mail from Lake Forest Park Elementary School. When we opened it, we discovered it was from a fourth grade class that had been doing creative art and writing projects while listening to our music. The students had sent us their beautiful drawings and paintings, poetry and stories that reflected their experience of the music.

We immediately sent a thank you letter to the class and offered to come visit them and do a presentation about music. For many years, we had been receiving feedback from educators who had used our music to support their teaching process. Every one of them had reported improved learning, better test scores, increased attention span, and generally - a calmer, more peaceful atmosphere in the classroom when they played our music. This of course had intrigued us and we began to explore the possibility of creating a curriculum that would use music to enhance teaching of the essential learning requirements as well as to support creative self-expression and emotional management.

With the increased evidence of violence among youth, we have also wanted to offer our music as a tool to help young people find a sense of inner calm that will lead to better management of the disruptive emotions of anger, fear, grief, and low self-esteem. In contrast to the intense and energetic music so pervasive through radio and television, peaceful, melodic music finds its way into the deeper places of the soul that can soothe and heal the psychological wounds that may lead to intense anti-social reactions.

In the classroom, there is a strong need to create a peaceful atmosphere where learning can occur with minimal disruption. There is also the constant challenge of supporting kids that are ADD or hyperactive while minimizing disruption to other class members. Alternatives to the modern tendency of prescribing drugs to calm them down are being discovered. Solutions include things like better diet (less sugar, processed foods, etc.) and substituting television watching with healthy physical activity. Teachers have also found that playing peaceful music in the classroom can trigger a response of relaxed alertness and improved concentration. Children actually look forward to the “quiet time” that comes when the peaceful music is played and many times they will request it specifically because they like to hear the sounds of nature and peacefulness of the music which in an urban environment are so often lacking.

Because many of our albums combine peaceful instrumental music with the sounds of various ecosystems, a simple curriculum can be created that supports teachers in their lesson plans and can include using the music as a basis for studying a particular ecosystem. One of our albums is called Ocean Dreams and features the sounds of whales and dolphins with the gentle lapping of ocean waves and seabirds. This album is ideal for a study program about the ocean and sea life. Children have a natural attraction for whales and dolphins. Lesson plans can range from science studies of the ocean ecosystem to creative writing about feelings and memories inspired by the music, or drawings and paintings based on oceans and sea life. Some of our other albums related to ecosystems are Forest Rain, Desert Moon Song, and Peaceful Pond and lesson plans can be adapted to fit the attributes and qualities of the different natural systems. Our EcoSampler video features music and video images from four ecosystems (forest, ocean, desert, wetlands) and is an ideal support for a comprehensive study of nature as well as for inspiration for creative writing, art and science, not to mention the peaceful calming effect it can have on the classroom.

When the mind is in a peaceful state it is more receptive to suggestion and retention of information. Research has shown that when the rhythm of music is about 60 beats per minute or in the range of a relaxed human heartbeat, the mind is better able to integrate the information being received. Many teachers even at the high school level find that playing the music during studying and test taking can lesson anxiety and actually improve test scores, particularly among students who normally score in the lower percentiles. The range of possible uses of the music is vast and we will continue to explore ways to enhance the learning experience for young people. The world can seem to be a pretty confusing place sometimes. We are grateful to be able to provide an oasis in the storm of life with our offering of Peace Through Music.

Dudley and Dean Evenson met in New York City in 1968 and have been creating music and media for healing and personal growth since 1979. They offer workshops in schools and hospitals and have produced over 50 albums reflecting their vision of Peace Through Music.