Carnival of Soul

ALTON — Amy Camie is not one to rest on her laurels. She’s always growing, always pursuing the next level, with most of it revolving around her talent as a harpist and her love of music, most particularly about the healing powers it can invoke.

And she’s bringing the relaxing sound of her harp to the area for a holiday concert at the Jacoby Arts Center, and two conscious self-care programs in St. Louis to give everyone a chance to experience it.

Originally from Godfrey, Camie now lives in Creve Coeur, Missouri. In August, she graduated as what she said is the only certified clinical musician in Missouri. Many of the concepts taught to become a therapeutic musician are the same as what Camie has been sharing for years in presentations such as Vibrational Awareness & The Healing Power of Music.

“I realized I’ve always been a therapeutic musician without the credentials,” she said. “In August, I completed the ‘Harp for Healing’ certification program, accredited through the National Standards Board of Therapeutic Musicians. I now have a name for the type of music I play naturally – inspired therapeutic solo harp music.”

This awareness led to a newly released compilation CD, “Love’s Gentle Embrace” that includes specifically chosen tracks from her previous CDs, along with a new extended single, recorded during her certification process, reflecting a specific style of therapeutic playing that transports the listener into a state of deep relaxation, comfort and peace.

Camie’s music has provided comfort to people for more than three decades, after “accidentally” discovering its healing powers when she played it for a sick friend, who said it made her relax and feel better.

“It all really started with a homemade cassette tape I did for my friend, Pat Clark, in 1987,” Camie said. “It is truly a dream come true that it has touched so many people since then.”

Camie began playing the harp when she was in the fourth grade, encouraged by her musical parents, Jean and Ken Conrady, both former music teachers in the Alton School District.

Her solo harp CDs, specifically “The Magic Mirror,” have been used in several research studies indicating how her music increases neurological functioning, supports the immune system and reduces pain, distress and anxiety levels, and is beneficial for general relaxation and stress reduction.

“I’ve always felt like a steward of the music; gently listening and following a higher conductor as the energy of the music expands around the globe,” Camie said.

Earlier this year, she and a group of doctors compiled the qEEG brainwave and immune system biomarkers research they originally performed several years ago with “The Magic Mirror” into a paper entitled “Effect of Specific Music on Psychoneuroimmunological Responses” that was published in “The International Journal of Oncology Research,” an open access, peer-reviewed online medical journal. Additional authors of the piece are Drs. Abdul Waheed, David Kossor and William Collins.

“My passion for exploring the healing benefits of music continued this year by collaborating with a team of researchers at a prestigious cancer center,” Camie said. “We designed a new feasibility study with ‘The Magic Mirror’ CD, and are in the final stages of approval. This study can help further increase the awareness between music therapy and therapeutic music, a distinction not currently well-known within the healthcare field.”

One of the differences between music therapy and therapeutic music, Camie said, is that music therapy involves prescriptive or outcome-based work, with specific and personalized goals that address the needs of each patient.

“Therapeutic music, on the other hand, involves playing music for patients, often at the bedside, without any specific goals or outcomes,” she explained. “Therapeutic musicians are trained to address the needs of the whole person, and play music to promote the natural healing process.

“Benefits of therapeutic music include pain management, increased relaxation, anxiety relief, lowering of blood pressure, and assisting the dying by easing their transition. Patients can benefit greatly from both music therapy and therapeutic music,” she added.

Camie’s dream is to gift the recorded music to patients and families to reach more of those who could benefit from it.

“Music can soothe, motivate, console and inspire, all through the concepts of resonance, sympathetic vibration and entrainment. Taken a step further, since everything in the universe is vibrating energy, I love demonstrating how music, sound and vibrations impact our thoughts, emotions, relationships with others, and our overall health,” she said.

To help alleviate stress and burnout, especially for those who care for others – at home or within their occupation – Camie introduces the same concepts of resonance in conscious self-care programs that empower others with the awareness of why it’s important to put themselves back in their lives.

“In the past, I thought I didn’t have time to take care of myself, mostly because I was always taking care of others,” she said. “It took a cancer diagnosis for me to finally slow down and start loving myself again. I had no idea how disconnected I was from my feelings, fears, dreams and desires.

“During my cancer journey, I remembered how to listen to my body, how to honor my needs, and how to choose what was most supportive for me. Now, I’m able to share my love more fully with others, because I continue to make conscious self-care choices for myself,” she said. “Our relationship with ourselves effects how we interact with others. Those interactions affect productivity, the work environment, job satisfaction, patient outcomes – and more.”

Upcoming free conscious self-care programs combine therapeutic healing harp music, personal experiences, and a clear understanding of vibrational resonance, expanding the perceptions of conscious self-care.

The two programs will be presented from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 24, and from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 4, at the Mercy Chapel, Mercy Conference and Retreat Center, 2039 N. Geyer Rd, St. Louis, MO 63131

The holiday solo harp concert, “Embracing the Spirit of Christmas,” will be presented at 2 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 22, at the Jacoby Arts Center.

To register for an event or for more information and resources, visit WWW.amycamie.com.