NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 Yoselin Sanchez has been in chronic pain since she was born with cervical scoliosis. While little eases the discomfort, she\u2019s found ways to distract herself from hurting.<\/p>\n
She practices yoga. She performs free flow dance<\/a>. And while she works, she frequently listens to house music<\/a> tuned to 432 hertz, a frequency lower than typical concert pitch.<\/p>\n Music recorded in 432 hertz (cycles per second) is taking off on social media platforms and music streaming services, where users can find an increasing number of tracks and playlists employing the alternate tuning, everything from meditation soundscapes<\/a> to reggae songs recorded by Ziggy Marley<\/a>.<\/p>\n Scientists say there\u2019s no robust evidence that music tuned to 432 hertz has any special benefits or healing properties. Some musicians and listeners say it helps them connect with nature, relax or concentrate.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are frequencies going on right now that are higher than what we can hear and lower than what can hear. And they\u2019re not special because they\u2019re one of the billions and billions of frequencies that we\u2019re receiving right now,\u201d said Susan Rogers, a Berklee College of Music professor emeritus who worked as Prince\u2019s sound engineer during the 1980s. \u201cTo set one aside and say that it is the frequency of the universe is, as far as the science community is concerned, nonsense.\u201d<\/p>\n To Sanchez, who provides telehealth services for a healthcare management organization in California, it doesn\u2019t matter if the feelings she has while listening to 432 hertz music have a scientific explanation.<\/p>\n \u201cIt helps me focus and be engaged with the patient I\u2019m assisting, and it also helps me relax,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen it comes to music, it could activate different feelings in people, the vibrations of it. It\u2019s not like a one-size-fits-all.”<\/p>\n The story behind 440 and 432 hertz<\/p>\n Throughout history, as people sang or played music together<\/a>, they tuned their instruments to the same pitch to create a harmonious sound. Singers and musicians often chose a musical note \u2014 typically the A above middle C on a piano \u2014 as a reference point.<\/p>\n The music genre known as \u201c432 Hz\u201d is characterized by its tuning, in which the A above middle C is pitch-adjusted to vibrate at 432 hertz instead of the standard 440 hertz. The lower frequency is noticeable to the naked ear<\/a>, sounding like slightly lower notes. Some people feel the alteration produces a warmer, more harmonious sound that resonates with the human body and the natural world.<\/p>\n Most orchestras and musicians now tune their instruments to 440 hertz. But that wasn’t always the case.<\/p>\n Until the 19th century, musicians tuned instruments according to local standards, which varied from one country to the next, said Fanny Gribenski, a music historian at New York University. \u201cFor most of music history, people are just singing within their own vocal range,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Eventually, there were orchestras and musical groups tuning to higher frequencies, and some composers became concerned that singers would be unable to perform music from the past, Gribenski said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe idea that it should be mainly a lower frequency than the ones that were in use at the time is really the cultural concern for protecting music from the past, protecting the voices of singers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n At the same time, as international travel became more widespread, the desire for a common tuning frequency grew. In 1939, representatives from multiple European countries and the U.S. agreed to accept 440 hertz as the international standard.<\/p>\n Artists continued to experiment with pitch over the decades that followed. In the 1980s and \u201990s, sound engineers sometimes took a recorded song and sped it up or slowed it down to achieve a brighter or slower sound, moving away from the frequency of 440 hertz, Rogers said.<\/p>\n But Rogers doubts that retuning a whole band or orchestra<\/a> to 432 hertz would improve its sound since many modern instruments were designed sound prettiest while tuned to 440 hertz.<\/p>\n \u201cSome of those instruments might sound a little sweeter, but it\u2019s likely that most won\u2019t,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Higher pitch generally means more brilliance, or perhaps a little more power in some instruments, Gribenski said. For those listeners who appreciate the lower 432 hertz music, \u201cI wonder if there is a sense of deceleration, slowing down slightly, and also taking one step down from the bright sounds of modernity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Working and 432 hertz music<\/p>\n Fans of working while accompanied by a 432 hertz soundtrack<\/a> cite a variety of reasons.<\/p>\n Amelia Beamer, who handles marketing at the North Carolina pharmacy her parents own, Andrews Apothecary, says she thinks taking work breaks to listen to music tuned to 432 hertz helps with her attention deficit hyperactivity disorder<\/a>. She’s noticed that she feels more focused if she listens before she starts a project.<\/p>\n Beamer works for 25 minutes, takes a five-minute listening break and then returns to the task at hand. She also listens to other frequencies, such as music tuned to 528 hertz.<\/p>\n \u201cIt definitely helps me feel more grounded and more centered,\u201d Beamer said of 432 hertz music. \u201cIt helps me slow down and to take some intentional space and time for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n