“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain,” sang Bob Marley. Songwriters may take poetic licence, especially where descriptions of their own powers are concerned, but there’s more than a little truth to Marley’s statement. Contemporary studies demonstrate music’s potential to ward off depression and lower stress-related hormones such as

“Art encompasses the breadth of human experience; it takes our joys and burdens and sorrows and transforms them into something beautiful,” says Dr. Ann Loewen. “Healing, medicine, and the arts all work together to contribute to the wellness of the whole person.”