I subscribe to Gary A. Scott’s newsletters. They are often full of interesting items.
The following is taken from one of them. It may prove helpful to some of you:
There are at
least three simple ways to turn on this super thinking ability: meditation, listening to 60 cycle music and taking Theanine.
These three steps integrate four categories of brainwaves, ranging from beta waves, the fastest of the four different brainwaves to alpha, theta and the final brainwave state, delta. Delta brainwaves are of the greatest amplitude and slowest frequency.
Deep dreamless sleep takes you down to the lowest frequency.
When we allow these waves to interconnect freely we gain unimaginable intellect.
Merri and I meditate twice every day to tap into this energy.
Plus we listen to 60 beat ten cycle classical music as we work.
You could count the number of times we have missed our meditation routine in the last 20 years on one hand. This has helped us enormously.
This type of music, along with deep breathing exercises for relaxation moves the mind into Alpha and deeper states as well.
Health benefits are gained as blood pressure can drop, heart rates slow and the mind becomes calmed.
This is a simple as listening to relaxing Baroque music such as Handel’s Water Music. A few others compositions at this cycle include Corelli’s Concerti Grossi, Op.
6, Violin and Orchestra in No. 2, 8, 5, 9. or J.S. Bach’s Fantasy in C Minor and Trio in D minor or Vivaldi’s Five Concertos for Flute and Chamber Orchestra.
Music has been used for centuries to induce states…babies being lullabyed to sleep, sea chanteys and harvesting songs to ease workers while laboring.
Eastern mystics and South American shaman have used music to carry them to unusual states of consciousness.
Your body relaxes and your mind becomes alert in these simple forms of relaxation.
The Soviet psychologist, I.K. Platonov, found it was possible to just use a metronome beating at 60 to enable the mind to take in and hold more strongly.
In choosing a recording of a slow movement, simply check that the tempo is about 60 beats a minute. When a composer writes a piece of music, he indicates the speed at which he wants each of the different movements or segments to be played.
These indications of tempo are generally given in Italian. You will often see them on the different movements of a concerto. For instance, allegro indicates a tempo of around 120 – 168 beats to the minute, andante around 76-108, adagio from around 66 to 76, larghetto 60 to 66 and largo 40-60 beats to the minute. Some performers and conductors may set a tempo somewhat faster or slower than what the composer indicated. To check out the tempo of a recording, be sure it’s at around 60 beats a minute. You can check it with a metronome or against a clock with a second hand. It’s LARGO that we are striving for.
Here is a portion of the music list provided with that study.
Bach, J.S.: Largo from Concerto in G Minor for Flute and Strings. Bach and Telemann Flute Concerts and Aria to The Goldberg Variations.
Corelli, A.: Sarabanda (largo) from Concerto #7 in D Minor.
Corelli: 12 Concerti Grossi op.5
Handel, G.F.: Largo from Concerto #1 in F. Music from the Royal Fireworks.
Telemann, G.: Largo from Double Fantasia in G Major for Harpsichord.
6 Fantasias for Harpsichord Vivaldi, A.: Largo from Winter. The Four Seasons
A third avenue that helps enhance intelligence is Theanine (chemical name: r-glutamylethylamide) one of the chemicals found in green tea. Theanine is used to reduce stress and anxiety without the tranquilizing effects found in many other calming agents. Scientific evidence shows that Theanine stimulates the brain’s production of alpha waves, making the user feel relaxed but alert and not drowsy. It also helps the body produce other calming amino acids, such as dopamine, GABA, and tryptophan. As might be expected from a calming supplement, Theanine may be able to lower elevated blood pressure as well.