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Beethoven's Fifth Cures Cancer
Or perhaps something else of similar import
Did you know that Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 kills 20 percent of cancer cells? It’s true; I know because someone posted it on Facebook. I thought it seemed interesting so I investigated it with the all-knowing power of Google search. According to Snopes.com, the claim is based on a study from 2011. It was performed by a team in Brazil, and the effect was observed on cells in petri dishes.
Unfortunately, putting Beethoven’s Fifth on repeat might not have the effect you’re looking for — 20 percent, then another 20 percent, and so on. Or maybe it will. Let’s turn to the 18th-century German poet and polymath Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg, also known as Novalis. Novalis was ahead of the cultural curve in his selection of a single-name representation. Madonna, Prince, and Beyoncé were late to the game by 200 years. Of course, some might be tempted out that Homer did it way before Novalis.
Novlis said, “Every disease is a musical problem; every cure is a musical solution.” He died in 1801; Beethoven’s Fifth came out in 1808. Perhaps the German Enlightenment was on to something when it comes to cancer research.
There is some research about using sound waves to effect cures. There are also theories about Ancient Egyptians using sound in healing. Will Beethoven’s Fifth prove out to be a cure for cancer? Probably not. Ok, definitely not. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to listen to it as if it were a cure for cancer.
I want to look a bit more at the Novalis quote. Novalis was something of an anti-Enlightenment thinker. He said things such as, “Poetry heals the wounds inflicted by reason,” and “Only an artist can interpret the meaning of life.” Novalis wasn’t having any of the reason-will-cure-the-world’s-problems-Kool-Aid. Fast forward 200 years, and many of us are drinking the science-will-cure-the-world's-problems-Kool-Aid. Will it, though? Will it?
As with Beethoven’s Fifth and cancer, probably not. There is no curing the world’s problems. There is only curing an individual’s problems, and most of that responsibility rests on the individual. With that in mind, allow me one more quote from Novalis. “The highest purpose of intellectual cultivation is to give a man a perfect knowledge and mastery of his own inner self.”
That idea, right there — that might cure the world’s problems. Mastering the inner-self might just do the trick. Mastering the inner-self is what art and philosophy were traditionally about. We live in a culture where the value of art is based on box office sales. When is the last time you saw a movie or listened to music that had anything, at all, to do with mastering the inner-self?
I’d venture to guess that it has been a while. Beethoven’s Fifth, on the other hand, is all about mastering the inner-self. Listen to it with that in mind. That famous first phrase is ominous, and it goes through several iterations before it produces the victorious final movement. All struggle, all stress, all victory, and all triumph are an internal game.
Never mind cancer; Beethoven’s Fifth cures 20 percent of internal struggles.
Video:
Beethoven Symphony No. 5
Here's something you might be interested in.
Beethoven's Fifth Cures Cancer
Or perhaps something else of similar import
Beethoven's Fifth Cures Cancer
Or perhaps something else of similar import
Did you know that Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 kills 20 percent of cancer cells? It’s true; I know because someone posted it on Facebook. I thought it seemed interesting so I investigated it with the all-knowing power of Google search. According to Snopes.com, the claim is based on a study from 2011. It was performed by a team in Brazil, and the effect was observed on cells in petri dishes.
Unfortunately, putting Beethoven’s Fifth on repeat might not have the effect you’re looking for — 20 percent, then another 20 percent, and so on. Or maybe it will. Let’s turn to the 18th-century German poet and polymath Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg, also known as Novalis. Novalis was ahead of the cultural curve in his selection of a single-name representation. Madonna, Prince, and Beyoncé were late to the game by 200 years. Of course, some might be tempted out that Homer did it way before Novalis.
Novlis said, “Every disease is a musical problem; every cure is a musical solution.” He died in 1801; Beethoven’s Fifth came out in 1808. Perhaps the German Enlightenment was on to something when it comes to cancer research.
There is some research about using sound waves to effect cures. There are also theories about Ancient Egyptians using sound in healing. Will Beethoven’s Fifth prove out to be a cure for cancer? Probably not. Ok, definitely not. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to listen to it as if it were a cure for cancer.
I want to look a bit more at the Novalis quote. Novalis was something of an anti-Enlightenment thinker. He said things such as, “Poetry heals the wounds inflicted by reason,” and “Only an artist can interpret the meaning of life.” Novalis wasn’t having any of the reason-will-cure-the-world’s-problems-Kool-Aid. Fast forward 200 years, and many of us are drinking the science-will-cure-the-world's-problems-Kool-Aid. Will it, though? Will it?
As with Beethoven’s Fifth and cancer, probably not. There is no curing the world’s problems. There is only curing an individual’s problems, and most of that responsibility rests on the individual. With that in mind, allow me one more quote from Novalis. “The highest purpose of intellectual cultivation is to give a man a perfect knowledge and mastery of his own inner self.”
That idea, right there — that might cure the world’s problems. Mastering the inner-self might just do the trick. Mastering the inner-self is what art and philosophy were traditionally about. We live in a culture where the value of art is based on box office sales. When is the last time you saw a movie or listened to music that had anything, at all, to do with mastering the inner-self?
I’d venture to guess that it has been a while. Beethoven’s Fifth, on the other hand, is all about mastering the inner-self. Listen to it with that in mind. That famous first phrase is ominous, and it goes through several iterations before it produces the victorious final movement. All struggle, all stress, all victory, and all triumph are an internal game.
Never mind cancer; Beethoven’s Fifth cures 20 percent of internal struggles.
Video:
Beethoven Symphony No. 5