Humming with Hemi-Sync® – Top 11 Albums For Therapeutic Humming with Binaural Beats
Hemi-Sync® is world renowned for the effectiveness of their scientifically validated binaural beats, which you can enjoy the benefits of simply by listening on headphones. But did you know that there are other powerful practices you can combine with Hemi-Sync® to take the healing and consciousness raising effects to the next level?
In this article we’ll explore one of the most effective (and simple) sound healing practices that you can do while listening to Hemi-Sync® to maximize the results and give your mind and body a cascade of additional beneficial benefits.
Health Benefits of Therapeutic Humming For Stress Relief
Chronic stress is currently understood to be a main underlying cause of many chronic diseases including autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and others. In a world plagued by chronic stress, there’s one sound healing practice that is proven to reduce stress and regulate the nervous system quickly, easily, and most importantly, for free!
This deceptively simple healing practice is known as therapeutic humming, and it’s being implemented by healthcare professionals across the board. From mental health and brain health professionals, to respiratory therapists and beyond, therapeutic humming has become a commonly recommended practice due to its wide variety of health benefits.
Health Benefits of Humming
Here’s a list of some of the main health benefits of therapeutic humming:
- -Vagus nerve stimulation: Humming is like putting a vibrational massage tool directly on your vagus nerve, which is one of the main reasons it can reduce stress and drop you into the parasympathetic nervous system so quickly.
- -Trauma & PTSD: Because it quickly regulates the nervous system, humming is one of the best practices for healing trauma, PTSD, and burnout.
- -Reducing Anxiety: The immediate stress relief effects of humming make it a great option for relieving anxiety and panic attacks.
- -15x Increase In Nitric Oxide: Humming increases nitric oxide in the nasal cavity by 15x. Be sure to take a deep breath through the nose immediately after each round of humming.
- -Lowering blood pressure: Nitric oxide from humming is a vasodilator, which helps open blood vessels to improve circulation and reduce blood pressure.
- -Nitric Oxide is an anti-viral compound that works to neutralize airborne viruses
- -Releases melatonin: Humming releases melatonin and can help relieve insomnia and improve sleep.
- -Releases oxytocin: Humming releases oxytocin, which is why feelings of bliss are common.
- -Increases blood oxygen levels: Oxygen retention in the lungs while humming can increase blood oxygen levels.
- -Reduce physical pain: Sound vibrations block pain receptors, so humming can reduce or eliminate pain symptoms, especially for body parts near the vocal cords and mouth.
- -Circulates cerebral spinal fluid: The subtle vibrations from the voice can help circulate cerebral spinal fluid, which is an important part of maintaining brain health and preventing diseases associated with memory loss.
- -Produces infrared light: Humming generates low levels of infrared light through the friction and heat generated by the movement of the vocal cords.
Parasympathetic Nervous System Is The Healing Mode Of The Body
The parasympathetic nervous system, also known as “rest & digest”, is the healing mode of the body. When the body is in a parasympathetic state, the body’s natural healing mechanisms kick into gear, digestion starts to flow, the breath deepens, and heart rate slows and stabilizes. However, even low levels of stress can kick the body out of its healing mode and into “fight or flight”, which is the sympathetic response. Over time if the body isn’t able to spend enough time in the parasympathetic due to chronic stress, issues can begin piling up and causing dis-ease in the natural flow of bodily processes.
The majority of healing occurs when we sleep because the body moves into parasympathetic during sleep, but through practices like therapeutic humming, vocal toning, and the use of healing music like Hemi-Sync® we can spend more waking hours in the parasympathetic nervous system and support the body’s natural healing processes.
15x Increase In Nitric Oxide, A Vital Compound For Health
Scientists Eddie Weitzberg and Jon O N Lundberg in Stockholm, Sweden have studied nitric oxide production in the mucosal tissues of the nasal cavity. During their research they discovered that the vibration of the nasal cavity from humming increases nitric oxide production in the nasal cavity by 15x – 20x.
Nitric oxide is a very temporary gas that only lasts for 3 seconds after it’s released, so if you want to get the benefits of nitric oxide from humming it’s critical to take a deep breath through the nose immediately following each round of humming. To learn more about the benefits and uses of nitric oxide check out this video by Dr. Louis Ignarro who won a Nobel prize in 1998 for his discovery of nitric oxide.
Combining Humming with Hemi-Sync® Frequencies For Brainwave Entrainment
Having explored some of the amazing benefits of humming, it’s pretty clear why combining humming with Hemi-Sync® can have extraordinary health benefits. Not only will you be receiving the hemisphere synchronization and brainwave entertainment effects of Hemi-Sync® frequencies, but you’ll also be regulating your nervous system, reducing stress, and supporting your immune system, brain health, and overall sense of wellbeing.
Whether your intention with Hemi-Sync® is to achieve better focus and concentration, relax into deeper meditation, or drift to sleep, adding humming to the experience for even a few minutes can help you quickly arrive at your desired state.
Humming & Vocal Toning In The Gateway Experience® – Resonant Tuning
It’s no wonder why humming and vocal toning are a significant part of the Gateway Experience® process. Known as “resonant tuning” in the gateway process, it plays a crucial role in helping the practitioner to achieve altered states of consciousness, out of body experiences, and to develop psychic sensitivities.
Deep relaxation is key for having out of body experiences, and to get to states of deep relaxation we use the voice to quickly drop into the parasympathetic nervous system while listening to Hemi-Sync® frequencies to entrain the brain to theta and delta waves; the realms of the subconscious.
If you explore the Gateway Experience® you’ll notice that resonant tuning is a practice that’s introduced at the very beginning of the training in Wave 1, and is a part of the practice from there on out.
The Voice Vibrates The Entire Body – Deep Listening Embodiment Practice
When you begin practicing therapeutic humming you may predominantly feel the vibration around your head, kneck, and chest. However, as you begin to calibrate your sensitivity to more subtle vibrations you’ll become aware that the vibrations from your voice travel to every corner of your body.
This can become a deep listening embodiment practice as you become aware of the subtle vibrations in bottoms of your feet and fingertips. Developing this inner awareness of subtle vibration is incredibly helpful enhancing your intuition, as well as becoming more discerning of the intuitive guidance from bodily sensations you receive while navigating life.
Combining An Intention Or Emotion With The Vocal Practice
During humming or vocal toning you can enhance the practice even further by resonating an intention or emotion. You can picture this like the intention or emotion is riding on the waves of your voice and traveling to every cell of your body. You can even visualize that your whole body has become a speaker and is projecting that emotion or intention to the external world.
Renowned sound healer and researcher Don Estes has studied how emotions and intention actually modulate the shape of a sound wave. This means that if you resonate love, gratitude, anger, or hate, all of those emotions will actually slightly change the shape of the wave form and carry that information throughout your body. Baring this in mind it’s helpful to be aware of your emotional state while you are practicing and intentionally cultivate more positive emotions if possible.
Humming And Vocal Toning On A Single Note for Trance States
A common question about therapeutic humming is whether to hum a tune or whether to hum a consistent pitch. For therapeutic purposes you generally will want to hum a consistent pitch.
Humming a consistent pitch (any pitch that feels good or matches the music) will enable muscle memory to take over after a few rounds of humming. Once you get into a rhythm and cycle on the same note, the muscle memory of your lungs and voice takes over and humming becomes effortless, allowing the mind to disengage. In other words, humming a stable consistent note can induce trance states because the mind is able to disengage while the body continues to repeat the established pattern.
If on the other hand you hum a tune, the mind has to engage with melody and rhythm, which can cause the mind to stay engaged while thinking about the next pitch or rhythm in the sequence.
Consider “Oming” as an example. Is there ever a melody or rhythmic phrase applied to OM? No, it’s generally a single pitch extended over time, which the yogis know is more helpful for entering trance states.
However, slightly bending a pitch up or down (sharp or flat of the main pitch) can be incorporated into this concept of a stable consistent pitch. This can be done without engaging the mind too intensely, and can even become a spiritual practice in itself. As you move slightly sharp of the pitch, and then back to center, and slightly flat of the pitch, and then back to center, you mirror the process of life in which we find integrity in our center, and then fall out of alignment, and then move back into alignment in the center.
Making Binaural Beats With Your Voice While Listening To Hemi-Sync® On Headphones
Using this method of bending the pitch up and down you can actually create additional binaural beats between your voice and the Hemi-Sync® audio. With each of the recommended Hemi-Sync® albums below there is a strong fundamental drone note in the music. When you wear headphones while humming with Hemi-Sync®, you can start on the fundamental tone and then bend the pitch slightly up or down.
As you bend the pitch you will hear an additional wobble emerge as the waves from your voice interact with the waves from the music. The faster the wobble, the further away you are from the fundamental pitch, but as you get closer to the fundamental pitch the wobble will slow down and eventually disappear when your voice matches the fundamental tone exactly. It may take some practice to hear the additional wobbles if you aren’t used to it, once you know what to listen for it becomes very obvious.
It can be fun and educational to experiment with this a bit while you hum with Hemi-Sync®.
Top 11 Hemi-Sync® albums for Practicing Therapeutic Humming
So without further adieu, here’s a list of our top 11 Hemi-Sync® albums to hum along with. Each album was selected and ranked based on how smoothly the voice integrates with the music, and the overall quality of relaxation felt while humming with each album. But don’t take our word for it, try them all yourself and see which one resonates the most with you!
One key quality in these tracks is a consistent extended drone note, generally in the low frequency range. The long legato qualities of these sounds mimic humming and provide the perfect anchor for a humming practice. Towards the end of the list you’ll find a few albums that feature drums and percussion that you could add movement or dance to while practicing.
To listen, you can explore the tracks for free on YouTube, download the Hemi-Sync® App, or purchase the individual albums.
#1 Album: Resonant Tuning From The Gateway Experience®
First on the list is resonant tuning. This audio features a group of voices and Hemi-Sync® frequencies for you to hum and tone along with. This is the same audio from the original Gateway Experience® tapes, and is one of the most popular albums among fans of Hemi-Sync® and the Gateway Experience®. This time-proven exercise may be used in preparation for entering meditative states or simply to quiet an overactive mind.
#2 Album – The Return by Micah Sadigh, Ph.D
This album features long lush ambient synth that gives you the sense you’re in a warm green forest being bathed in sunlight. As you hum along to this music, higher frequency synth lines trickle down over your voice as it blends with the gently undulating midrange. One of the favorite albums by Hemi-Sync® users, this ethereal music by Micah Sadigh gently guides you to a divine state of consciousness as you reconnect with the Source. Soothing and warm, it’s perfect for overcoming anxiety or dropping into meditative states.
#3 Album – Mystic Realms by Brad Allen
Mystic Realms by Brad Allen gently imparts feelings of mystery and awe reminiscent of being under the stars at night. You can hear reverb drenched voices toning along with you in the background as ambient flute drifts through the soundscape. This album is perfect for meditation or for preparing for sleep. Featuring long consistent droning bass, this is one of the favorites for practicing therapeutic humming and vocal toning.
#4 Album – Cosmic Consciousness by Barry Goldstein
Cosmic Consciousness by Barry Goldstein is among the most popular Hemi-Sync® albums of all time. It also happens to be a favorite for therapeutic humming and vocal toning. The long ambient bass drone with shimmering high synth lines provides a magical backdrop for any practitioner seeking a transcendental experience. Close your eyes and visualize the loving waves of cosmic consciousness washing over you as you blend your voice with this mesmerizing soundscape.
#5 Album – The Winds of Spirit by Byron Metcalf and Mark Seelig
Winds of Spirit by Byron Metcalf and Mark Selig transport the listener to the tranquil temples and lotus ponds of the east. Your voice blends naturally with droning tanpura and bansuri flute, supporting meditative states of bliss. The slow rhythmic drumming of Byron Metcalf invites gentle movement or the opportunity to bring rhythmic pulses to the voice as you hum or tone. Take the practice even deeper by envisioning yourself receiving teachings of universal love into the heart.
#6 Album – Reflections by Rick Borgia
Reflections by Rick Borgia is a lively soundscape with gentle drumming that matches the summery synth lines floating over your voice as you hum or tone along. You may feel called to sway or dance, or to visualize the dance of universal energies as they swirl and materialize into the world we see around us. This album is quite different from many of the other selections on this list, and was listed at #2 before other more drony and gentle albums made their way to the top of the list.
#7 Album – The Disciples Path by Mark Seelig
Track 3 of the The Disciples Path Collection by Mark Selig provides a wonderful eastern soundscape for therapeutic humming or vocal toning. Accompanied by drumming and rhythmic plucking of strings this album will lift your spirits as you entrain your energy to the optimistic voice of the bansuri flute. While the other tracks in The Disciples Path Collection are also great for vocal toning, this one made the list for its unique repeating rhythms as well as its popularity among Hemi-Sync® listeners.
#8 Album – Higher by J.S. Epperson
Higher by J.S. Epperson imparts the peaceful feeling of floating above the world like the currents of the aurora borealis. As you practice humming or vocal toning, notice how matching your voice to the fundamental bass synth drone amplifies the soothing low frequencies in a way that fills the body with deep resonant energies. This is the perfect album for practicing creating additional binaural beats by bending the pitch of your voice up and down away from the fundamental and noticing how this creates wobbles between your voice and the audio.
#9 Album – Strand by Zero Ohms & Thunderjack
Strand by Zero Ohms & Thunderjack is an oceanic experience that offers the peaceful seabed as a place to find stillness. You can visualize your humming and vocal toning like the sounds of a whale or mysterious sea creature calling out with a calm and patient disposition. This music is perfect for soothing anxiety or just simply transporting you temporarily to a natural environment far away from the hustle and bustle of modern life.
#10 Album – Spirit of The Sea by David Helpling
Spirit of the Sea by David Helpling is an ambient masterpiece featuring electric guitar. Combining slow bass swells, shimmering high frequency delays, and mermaid-like female voices, this album offers a unique backing track to your therapeutic humming practice unlike any other album on this list. Flow with this track by allowing the pitch of your voice to flow up and down with the chord changes as you find your center in the moving currents of this soundscape.
#11 Album – Adventures In Synaptic Exploration by Byron Metcalf, featuring Frore (Paul Casper), Dashmesh, Joel Olivé, Sherry Finzer
Looking for a full on shamanic experience from your humming practice? Adventures In Synaptic Explorations offers just that, with a symphony of drums in stereo imparting the feeling of being surrounded by drums and dancing. The bass drone provides a steady anchor in the middle for you to hum along with, while synth and otherworldly voices wind their way in and out of the soundscape. Perfect for awakening your primal energies and inspiring you to move, this is the most activating album on the list and could be used for focus and concentration while simultaneously enjoying the stress relief benefits of a vocal practice.
Article Written by Nicholas Penn, Founder of 1:11 Sound Healing
Nicholas Penn is the YouTube channel manager and content producer for Hemi-Sync® and is also the owner and founder of 1:11 Sound Healing, an online school that helps people learn the foundations of therapeutic sound.
