Professional Journal Articles
This page cites sources of information on harp therapy from professional journals. Please note that there are some listings pertaining to the benefits of music and sound in general, without specific mention of the harp. There are many research studies on the healing power of music and sound, but there are actually few scientific studies that specifically investigate the healing power of the harp. As the emerging field of harp therapy continues to grow, scientific research documenting its value will surely increase and validate the many benefits of this ancient healing instrument.
Aragon, D., C. Farris, and J.F. Byers. Sept/Oct 2002. The effects of harp music in vascular and thoracic surgical patients. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. vol. 8, no. 5: p. 52-60.
Arnon, S., S. Bauer, T. Dolfin, L. Forman, I. Litmanovitz, R. Regev, and A. Shapsa. June 2006. Live music is beneficial to preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit environment. Birth. vol. 33, no. 2: p. 131-136.
Balik, M.J., and R. Lee. Mar/Apr 2003. The power of sound: ethnomedical tradition and modern science. Alternative Therapies. vol. 9, no. 2: p. 96-98.
Block, S.M., D. Jennings, and L.R. David. 2003. Live harp music decreases salivary cortisol levels in convalescent premature infants. Pediatric Research 53, no. 4:469A-470A.
Block, S.M., K. Kemper, K. Martin, R. Shoaf, and C. Woods. March/April 2004. Attitudes and expectations about music therapy for premature infants among staff in a neonatal intensive care unit. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. vol. 10, no. 2: p. 50-54.
Bock, K.A. Spring 1999. Harp music eases pain from lupus. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 4.
Briggs, T. Winter 2003-2004. Live harp music reduces anxiety of patients hospitalized with cancer. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 8, no. 4.
Buchanan, L. Summer 1996. Harp debuts in operating room. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 1, no. 2: p. 1.
Byers, J.F., and K.A. Smyth. May 1997. Effect of a music intervention on noise annoyance, heart rate, and blood pressure in cardiac surgery patients. American Journal of Critical Care. vol. 6, no. 3: p. 183-191.
Caine, J. 1991. The effects of music on the selected stress behaviors, weight, caloric and formula intake, and length of hospital stay of premature and low birth weight neonates in a newborn intensive care unit. Journal of Music Therapy. vol. 28, no. 4: p. 180-192.
Caserta, M., L. Freeman, and D. Lund. April 2005. Music thanatology: prescriptive harp music as palliative care for the dying patient. American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care. vol. 45, no.2.
Cassidy, J.W., J.M. Standley. 1995. The effect of music listening on physiological responses of premature infants in the NICU. Journal of Music Therapy. vol. 32, no. 4: p. 208-227.
Cevasco, A.M., R.E. Grant. 2005. Effects of the pacifier-activated lullaby on weight gain of premature infants. Journal of Music Therapy. vol. 42: p. 123-139.
Chen, R.H., L.L. Chou, L. Pai, and R.H. Wang. Sept. 2003. Effects of music therapy on oxygen saturation in premature infants receiving endotracheal suctioning. The Journal of Nursing Research. vol. 11, no. 3: p. 209-216.
Chesky, K.S. and D.E. Michel. Spring 1997. Music and music vibration for pain relief. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 2, no. 1: p. 1, 11-13, 15.
Chou, M., and M. Lin. 2006. Exploring the listening experiences during guided imagery with music therapy of outpatients with depression. Journal of Nursing Research. vol. 14, no. 2: p. 93-101.
Collins, S.K., and K. Kuck. 1991. Music therapy in the neonatal intensive care unit. Neonatal Network. vol. 9: p. 23-26.
Cooke, M., W. Chabover, P. Schluter, and M. Hiratos. 2005. Effect of music on preoperative anxiety in day surgery. Journal of Advanced Nursing. vol. 52, no. 1: p. 47-55.
Egnew, T.R. July 12, 2005. The meaning of healing: transcending suffering. www.medline.com.
Eisele, M. Summer 1999. Bringing heart to the hospital: Special neonatal care unit benefits from harp music. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 10-11.
Elkan, E. Summer 2005. Bedside harp launches a groundbreaking research project. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 10, no. 2: p. 1, 15.
Elkan, E. Summer 2005. Bedside harp wins Blair L. Sadler international healing arts competition. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 10, no. 2: p. 14.
Elkan, E., D.V. Nolan. Summer 2004. Taking up the harp as an adult sweetens life, study shows. The Harp Therapy Journal.
Edelson, L. Fall 2001. Compassionate Harps-A new therapeutic harp service available in Southern California: Community service eases pain for the critically ill or dying. The Harp Therapy Journal vol. 6, no. 3: p. 1, 12.
Ernst, E., and J.I. Rand. Nov 1988. Complementary therapies for depression. Archives of General Psychiatry. vol. 55. p. 1026-1032.
Froehlich, M.A. Winter 1998-99. Opportunities for the harp with pediatric patients. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 10.
Halstead, M.T., S.T. Roscoe. 2002. Music as an intervention for oncology nurses: restoring the spirit at the end of life. Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing. 6, no. 6.
Hunter, B.C., and O.J.Z. Sahler. June 2006. Music for very young ears. Birth. vol. 33, no. 2: p. 137-138.
Hsu, Wei-Chi, and Hui-Ling Lai. Oct 2004. Effects of music on major depression in psychiatric inpatients. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing. vol. 18, no. 5: p. 193-199.
Jeong, S., and M.T. Kim. 2007. Effects of a theory-driven music and movement program for stroke survivors in a community setting. Applied Nursing Research. vol. 20. p. 125-131.
Kemper, K.J., and S.C. Danhauer. 2005. Music as therapy. Southern medical journal 98, no. 3:282-288.
Kim, S.J., and I. Koh. Spring 2006. The effects of music on pain perception of stroke patients during upper extremity joint exercises. Journal of Music Therapy. vol. 40, no. 1: p. 81-92.
Kocheril, A.G., J.C. Mackinnon, and M.A. Prasun. July 12, 2006. Music and Electrophysiology. Electrophysiology Lab Digest.
Lewis, C.R., et al. 2003. Integrating complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) into standard hospice and palliative care. American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care. vol. 20, no. 3: p. 221-228.
Lounsbury, M. Fall 2002. The effects of harp music at Porter Adventist Hospital Cancer Care Center, Denver, Colorado. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 4-5, 12.
Marie, L. Summer 2005. Therapeutic harp reaches neurologically challenged children in Canada. The Harp Therapy Journal. p.8.
McKee, S. Fall 2004. Gentle musings: Assessing effects of live harp music upon patients, families and friends, and staff at Maschusetts General Hospital's Cancer Center. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 9, no. 3.
Miller, M.S. 19 May 2003.The science behind the art. Nursing Spectrum. vol. 12, no. 10: p. 9.
Murphy, E.M., J. Nichols, S.G. Somkuti, M. Sobel, J. Schinfeld, G. Galante, and L.I. Barmat. Winter 2011-12. Randomized trial of harp therapy in in-vitro fertilization-embryo transfer study is completed. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 16, no. 4: p 1, 10.
Norton, J. Winter 2004--05. Harp care gently touches southwest Missouri. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 9, no. 4: p. 1,4-5, 15.
Riley, L. Spring 2002. A pilot program-Therapeutic music at Flagstaff Medical Center. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 7, no. 1: p. 1, 9.
Sarkamo, T., et al. 2008. Music listening enhances cognitive recovery and mood after middle cerebral artery stroke. Brain: A Journal of Neurology. vol. 131, no. 3: p. 866-876.
Schroeder-Sheker, T. 1994. Music for the dying: a personal account of the new field of music-thanatology-history, theories, and clinical narratives. Journal of holistic nursing : official journal of the American Holistic Nurses' Association. vol. 12, no. 1: p. 83-99.
Staneslow, S. Spring 2006. Live music lulls newborns and slows heart rates. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 14.
Standley, J.M. 2002. A meta-analysis of the efficacy of music therapy for premature infants. Journal of Pediatric Nursing. vol. 17: p. 107-113.
Standley, J.M. Nov-Dec 1998. The effect of music and multimodal stimulation on responses of premature infants in neonatal intensive care. Pediatric Nursing. vol. 24, no. 6: p. 532-538.
Terman, S.A. Summer 1999. Healing from bedside harp playing - a psychiatrist's persective. The Harp Therapy Journal.
Tourin, T. Fall 2000. The effects of harp therapy at San Diego Hospice and other health-care facilities. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 13-14.
Twiss, E., J. Seaver, and R. McCaffrey. 2006. The effect of music listening on older adults undergoing cardiovascular surgery. Nursing in Critical Care. vol. 2, no. 5: p. 224-231.
Whipple, J. 2000. The effect of parent training in music and multimodal stimulation on parent-neonate interactions in the neonatal intensive care unit. Journal of Music Therapy. vol. 37, no. 4: p. 250-268.
White, J.M. July 1999. Effects of relaxing music on cardiac autonomic balance and anxiety after acute myocardial infarction. American Journal of Critical Care. vol. 8, no. 4: p. 220-230.
Williams, S. Winter 2002-2003. Study shows live harp music decreases pain and anxiety in postoperative patients. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 7, no. 4.
Williams, S. Spring 2001. Patients with Parkinson's Disease find relief with harp music. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 6-7.
Williams, S. Fall 2001. Music energizes patient's with Alzheimer's Disease. The Harp Therapy Journal. p. 4-5.
Williams, S.J. Fall 1996. Healing harps improves quality of life for women with Multiple Sclerosis. The Harp Therapy Journal. vol. 1, no. 3: p. 4, 9.