Music industry worth $1b to WA economy

The Western Australian music industry is pumping nearly $1 billion into the state's economy, a study has revealed, strengthening calls for more government support.    

Researchers at Edith Cowan University found the sector contributed $985 million in 2014 and employed almost 3,000 people as WA hosted more than 350 live music events each week.

It also found contemporary music made up 49 per cent of ticket sales in Western Australia, compared with festivals at 13 per cent, musical theatre at 9 per cent and classical music and opera at 5 per cent.

The billion dollar figure did not take into account any cash sales, but it was double what industry group WA Music (WAM) chief executive Mike Harris had anticipated.

'It's still pretty good in WA'

Until now the sector has largely relied on anecdotal evidence when fighting for funding.

WAM president Al Taylor said the new research allowed the group to mount a stronger argument for private sponsorship and government funding, to put music on a more even playing field with the likes of theatre and ballet.

Perth-based singer, songwriter and member of the four-piece Little Lord Street Band, James Rogers, believed the local music scene was healthy despite a decline in arts funding around the country.

Arts Minister John Day said it was important for the State Government to take a balanced approach to arts funding.

"There are those art forms that have been around for, in some cases, hundreds of years and they're a very important part of our heritage," Mr Day said.

How listening to music could help you beat insomnia

In our hectic world, a good night’s sleep is worth its weight in gold when it comes to improving physical and mental well-being. Much more than a basic method of energy conservation, sleep is a state during which muscle and bone are generated and repaired, and memories and learning systems are updated. Sleep also allows the body and brain to clear out the toxic byproducts of the day’s waking activity that might otherwise build up and cause harm. In short, good sleep is a cornerstone of human health.
                 

Insomnia can be devastating, and has been linked to cognitive deficiencies – such as memory lapses, psychological problems including mood and anxiety disorders, and long-term health concerns including obesity and dementia. The most severe cases of chronic insomnia can even increase the risk of mortality.

Music for sleep?

Research has shown that listening to “self-selected” music – music of your choice – can actually shorten stage two sleep cycles. This means people reach restful REM sleep – the restorative part of our sleep – more quickly.

In the study, students who listened to 45 minutes of music before bedtime for three weeks saw a cumulative positive effect on multiple measures of sleep efficiency with similar effects reported in older citizens in Singapore. Following all this evidence, the NHS now recommends “listening to soft music” before bedtime as a method to prevent insomnia.

Face the music

We also found out a lot about the reasons why people are turning to music in the first place. And they are varied. In our research, people highlighted the importance of music for blocking disruptive external (such as traffic) and internal (like tinnitus) sounds, for filling uncomfortable silences, and providing a sense of companionship and security.

This suggests that a one size fits all approach to music for sleep is unlikely to suit all insomniacs, because people are tuning into so many different types of music for so many different reasons.