As the first issue rolls out and I’m facing the possibilities of a white page, I turn to my life as a musician to distill answers to these simple, yet insightful questions--"Can music bring peace? Peace to the world, peace to society, peace to one's self?"

When faced with challenges, I rely on my experience and what I’ve learned in my life to draw my conclusions. A flow of pictures babble across my mind…age 6, snuggled up in the cello case of my mother as she rehearsed in the symphony; age 11, blasting reveille out the second story window of our little house to wake the neighbors; age 16, wailing in my pillow to cliché but potent Chicago ballads after the ‘just be friends’ explanation; age 22, familiar sweaty palms leading me into a Thursday morning music theory exam; age 26, tears falling past my smile to my tux, trembling piano fingers and a wavering voice that sang devotion lyrics to she-who-was-about-to-be-my-wife; and finally at age 30, falling through restlessness into sleep by sounds of a meditation piano album I recorded a few months ago.

That I can remember these thoughts, and that there is some word or element of music accompanying each of these stories, tells me that music is somehow and strongly linked to my emotions. Other remarkable frames from my life movie including graduations, funerals, moving away from loved ones, high achievement and days where emotions were at extreme levels can be relived if only I play the song that was the soundtrack of that experience. Indeed, as if whisked by a time machine I can feel my past by sifting the albums in my collection.

Now that I am aware of this phenomenon, at times of fantastic living I will intentionally find music to inaugurate into my life memory soundtrack. It’s like a cash deposit to my emotional bank account, saving for leaner times.

Have you experienced the power of music to stir up emotional memories from your past? If so, can we also agree that it’s possible to control and predict what you or I feel in this moment by what sounds enter our ears? If you agree and have crossed this bridge of mutual understanding with me, then we have the potential of finding our answers to the day’s questions in short order.

Think to your past. If you can remember a time of peace in your life, and if you can remember a song that is associated with that time, then all you need do is play that song and close your eyes. If my prediction is correct and you gave yourself several minutes to settle into the music and your memory, I forecast you will have opened your eyes to a more peaceful world. The music will have triggered your emotional memories of peace, which in turn affected your mind and body of today. If you were successful, is this not a fantastic and simple tool to add to your belt?

For those of you who fall short of one or both of the above your work is a bit more intentional, but no less attainable. For one week, spend every day listening to the same song—a song you have never heard before but one that you like from the start. Sit comfortable, away from distractions and close your eyes. Imagine yourself floating on your back in a large mountain lake with water of a perfect temperature, looking into a welcoming blue sky with relaxing sunshine on your face. Get lost in these images and sounds! When the song is over, go back to what you were doing previous to this exercise.

You may stop this after one week of daily practice. Later on in a time of stress or confusion, try playing your “peace trigger song” again and see what happens. Through intentional programming, you may have created a song that can invite peace into your day. If you allow yourself to sit with the ramifications of this process, it just might change your life.

I have taken the perspective that music can and will trigger emotions in your body (especially those that you have previously felt) like a bookmark to your feelings and memories. I have not, however, examined if music by its own nature has specific qualities that can impose emotions in some predictable way. We’ll take a look at this idea in a future issue.

Until then, I charge you to be aware of the soundtrack playing in the background of your life and see if you can create the ability to recall your emotions with scientific accuracy. If you succeed in creating a tool for intentionally bringing peace to your life, and since your life is a part of the larger whole of humanity, then I dare say that music can and will positively affect peace in the world.

Aaron Klump is a musician in the Portland/Vancouver area whose recent meditation album journals his adventures living in South Korea. To hear new music or check him out, please visit his website at http://www.aaronklump.com This article used with permission, all rights reserved. Copyright © 2005 by Aaron Klump. Send your thoughts about this article to thoughts@aaronklump.com