Creating the perfect escape through music just became easier thanks to a study conducted by the British Academy of Sound Therapy. Weightless by Marconi Union solidly took the number one spot, making listeners 11% more relaxed than any other song. Listeners’ anxiety levels fell a remarkable 65%, a full 35% lower than their normal resting rate. Doctors involved in the study issued an advisory against driving while listening to the song because the effects were so dramatic.
The study revealed that relaxing music is determined by sound length, harmonic intervals, lack of repetition, and low tones. Further analysis of this song against the criteria was provided by the founder of the British Academy of Sound Therapy, Lyz Cooper who noted:
- Song Length. The process of the body matching its rhythm to that of background music, called entertainment, takes five minutes. At eight minutes long, Weightless allows listeners plenty of time to go through the process and fully relax into the calming rhythm it dictates.
- Harmonic Intervals. The song was expertly crafted by sound therapists to make sure that the gaps between notes were perfectly timed, creating a feeling of euphoria and comfort.
- No Repeat. The soothing melody of Weightless never repeats because when the melody repeats, the brain stays focused on predicting the next note. With no repeating melody, the brain can simply “shut off” and drift further into relaxation.
- Low Tones. High tones stimulate but the low tones used in this song, such as random chimes, low, whooshing sounds, and hums reminiscent of Buddhist chants, place the listener in a trance-like state.
When choosing a playlist for massage and relaxation that will lead to the highest level of client satisfaction, we can learn much from this study. Tie National, LLC (TIE) provides Background Music (BGM) in Sound Suite. TIE’s Sound Suite is perfect for spa settings because of the thousands of songs that make up the provided playlists. Users can change the playlist to avoid staff and client “burn-out” associated with hearing the same song played over and over.
Spas also benefit from the message on hold scheduling from within the Sound Suite portal. Featuring unlimited daily changes included with the annual subscription, spa owners can schedule their on hold messages to match current promotions, offer memberships, run seasonal greetings, and more as often as needed to appeal to repeat clients and potential customers who may be waiting on the line.
Michael Durante spent his teenage years into his early 20s climbing the ladder in a branch of a successful banking firm, starting as a teller and ending as a Sr. Branch Manager within 6 years. In 2003, he left the banking world to join his father and create TIE National, a telecom company 60 years in the making. Together, they grew the company from a two-man operation solely working on telephones to a multi-million dollar international business with employees in over a dozen states, covering everything from phone systems to cloud products and computer systems. You can find Michael on LinkedIn.