By Lia Kovac

While listening to music can be entertaining, it has also been proven to have many positive benefits on mental health. In short, yes music can make us healthier. Music has been known to relax the mind, lower stress, elevate mood levels, reduce depression, etc. It offers listeners many psychological benefits as well. Think about going for a morning jog. What type of music gets the listener pumped and ready to jump out of bed? Most people would say something upbeat. Music has the power to impact our moods and inspire us to take action. The music we listen to can change our perception of the world. 

Covid-19 has caused a whirlwind of emotions for people around the globe. It has caused fear and uncertainty, leaving many feeling anxious and overwhelmed. Four Australian startup companies found a way to help their citizen’s mental health by creating apps that utilize the power of music. As part of the ARIA week, the Australian Institute of Music held a contest, looking for innovative ideas that could have a powerful impact on the music industry. The four innovations that made the cut were apps Lavender, Drop It, A Capella Mixer and Inverse. Below are my top three favorites. 

Lavender, the winning app and people’s choice vote, uses a metric wearable to measure heart rate. Someone suffering from overwhelming anxiety can simply open the app, have their heart rate read, and be presented with a catalog of 100,000 plus songs that have been studied to offset the symptoms of a panic attack. The app monitors the heart rate to ensure the selected music is doing its job in lowering the heart rate. If the heart rate is not positively lowering, the app suggests a new song. 

Drop.It is a bit different as its main focus is connecting the older generation with the younger generations. They understand that the older generations are dealing with social isolation and loneliness of covid-19 on a much deeper level. Drop.It creates a simple and fun app that allows grandparents to access a message from their grandchildren. The grandparent accesses a message from a grandchild in AR simply by pointing their smartphone at a marked photo or drawing of the kid on their wall. The grandchild is able to turn any music video into 3D posts quickly and efficiently, allowing them to express their creativity. A great tool sparks communication between the generations. 

The third app created was A Capella Mixer. Because of the pandemic, church choirs were put on pause. Unlike other activities, Zoom chats were not ideal for a choir. A Capella Mixer offers singing in parts to create an ensemble. Users pay as little a $2 a month for basic access and up to $10 for premium access. Users are able to access their favorite sheet music, practice in harmony using pre-recorded songs and create a mixtape using the voices of different choir members. The app also allows a reward program that encourages participation. 

While covid-19 may have left many of us feeling overwhelmed about the future, it is promising to see innovations like this come out during a time of struggle and uncertainty. These innovators took a problem and came up with a solution. While these apps can’t fix everything wrong in the world right now, they can offer users a sense of comfort during these trying times. For more information, visit The Music Network.

Lia is a culture writer for La Tonique.