For the past five weeks, as part of her Science Fair project, Katie Steffl of Sleepy Eye has been researching the following question: Does music affect a person’s mood, heart rate and blood pressure?

Katie’s hypothesis is that, yes, music can affect a person’s mental and physical state. To prove her hypothesis is correct, Katie has been playing the harp for a group of Divine Providence residents.

An accomplished harpist, Katie has been playing the instrument for the past five years. When considering an idea for her science project, it seemed only natural that Katie would incorporate her own talent into the mix.

On Sunday, Katie gathered her charts and her harp and headed to Emelia Hammerschmidt’s room. Katie said Emelia is one resident who nearly dances to the music. But not on this day...
It took but a few short minutes before Emelia appeared to doze off to the melodious, celestial tones of an Irish-style harp.

And who could blame her? Harp music is simply beautiful, relaxing, good for the soul. “A few of the residents do that,” Katie observed. “They really relax and sometimes get sleepy.

“It’s fun for me to watch the residents’ eyes,” Katie continued, explaining her observations are part of her research. “I can tell if, during the music, they are thinking of someone or something.

“The residents tell me it’s such beautiful music. One of them tells me, ‘thank-you, thank-you’ when I play. They often tell family stories because the music reminds them of someone and a few of the residents recognize ‘Long, Long Ago’ when I play it. The low bass tones really relax them.”

The residents chosen for the project were those who Divine Providence staff felt could benefit from music therapy, those who were sometimes agitated, those who would enjoy Katie’s company.

Each musical session lasts about 10 minutes. Prior, Katie, a certified nursing assistant, checks their heart rate and blood pressure and notes the resident’s mood. Following the music, she conducts the same tests and charts the results a second time.

The results Katie has seen seem to prove her hypothesis correct. In many cases, the heart rate and blood pressure decrease and the resident’s mood changes, becoming more calm, tranquil.

“It has also happened that a resident’s blood pressure was so low and, after we were done, it went up,” Katie said. “In that case, that can be a positive thing too.”