Most of my posts have been focused on the negative and frustrating aspects of misophonia. I'd like to take a step back and talk about something about me that I believe may be a positive outcome of misophonia (if there is such a thing...)
I've spent a lot of time over the past several months revisiting aspects of my life where misophonia has played a part, through which I've had many a cerebral discussion with my aunt - who was the only person over the years who understood my suffering with sounds, long before we heard about misophonia. Even when I relayed my frustrations after seeing various doctors about my condition, my aunt constantly reminds me about my creative past - my music background (singing, playing multiple instruments), my fine arts (particularly sculpture) background (clay, glass, stone, bronze, acrylic, metal, holography...), my theater background (on and off the stage), my architectural lighting work, my creative writing... The list goes on. Of course I tell her she's just biased but the more I thought about it, I think my misophonia may have played some part in the heightened sensitivities that allowed me to excel in these creative areas.
The reason why I mention my creative background is that last night, one of my friends (who's also a coworker) invited me to see an acappella group called Pentatonix. What's ironic is that I never told her that I absolutely *LOVE* acappella music. In fact, it was all I listened to during the 90's (mainly college groups, but even professional groups such as The Nylons and The Bobs.) There's just something magical about the human voice being able to blend so well within acapella arrangements. Going to the Pentatonix concert last night brought that musical magic back to me, and then some.
For those of you who might not know Pentatonix, they won the "Sing Off" competition on NBC. (Videos of their performances can be seen here.) I didn't watch the actual Sing Off show, I'm not much into reality television, but last night's performance got me hooked on them. From their singing, to the bass and beat box performances, and even the choreography... The group knew how to entertain. Several of the songs even gave me chills/goose bumps IN A GOOD WAY. I could feel the sound right into my core, and it was incredible. (There was only one time when I had a misophonia moment, but that was when the performers took a break with a little talking banter and someone out in the audience blew an insanely loud - and annoying - whistle.) But besides that... They are very talented performers, and not just singing as a group. At one point in the show, Kevin “K.O.” Olusola, who does beat box for their arrangements, brought out his cello and performed beat box as he played the cello. It was like Bobby McFerrin and Yo Yo Ma merged into one person.
Granted, other people with misophonia might find some triggers in the sound of beat box accompaniments or maybe other aspects of acappella arrangements, but there's something about the beauty of all those parts coming together into one harmonious sound that's heavenly to my ears.
(As a follow-up to my last post: I went over to the store where I originally bought my awesome earbuds as soon as it opened that morning. I lucked out and got the last pair of Jabra Rhythm headphones to replace the ones that weren't working. I'm VERY happy that worked out.)
I've spent a lot of time over the past several months revisiting aspects of my life where misophonia has played a part, through which I've had many a cerebral discussion with my aunt - who was the only person over the years who understood my suffering with sounds, long before we heard about misophonia. Even when I relayed my frustrations after seeing various doctors about my condition, my aunt constantly reminds me about my creative past - my music background (singing, playing multiple instruments), my fine arts (particularly sculpture) background (clay, glass, stone, bronze, acrylic, metal, holography...), my theater background (on and off the stage), my architectural lighting work, my creative writing... The list goes on. Of course I tell her she's just biased but the more I thought about it, I think my misophonia may have played some part in the heightened sensitivities that allowed me to excel in these creative areas.
The reason why I mention my creative background is that last night, one of my friends (who's also a coworker) invited me to see an acappella group called Pentatonix. What's ironic is that I never told her that I absolutely *LOVE* acappella music. In fact, it was all I listened to during the 90's (mainly college groups, but even professional groups such as The Nylons and The Bobs.) There's just something magical about the human voice being able to blend so well within acapella arrangements. Going to the Pentatonix concert last night brought that musical magic back to me, and then some.
For those of you who might not know Pentatonix, they won the "Sing Off" competition on NBC. (Videos of their performances can be seen here.) I didn't watch the actual Sing Off show, I'm not much into reality television, but last night's performance got me hooked on them. From their singing, to the bass and beat box performances, and even the choreography... The group knew how to entertain. Several of the songs even gave me chills/goose bumps IN A GOOD WAY. I could feel the sound right into my core, and it was incredible. (There was only one time when I had a misophonia moment, but that was when the performers took a break with a little talking banter and someone out in the audience blew an insanely loud - and annoying - whistle.) But besides that... They are very talented performers, and not just singing as a group. At one point in the show, Kevin “K.O.” Olusola, who does beat box for their arrangements, brought out his cello and performed beat box as he played the cello. It was like Bobby McFerrin and Yo Yo Ma merged into one person.
Granted, other people with misophonia might find some triggers in the sound of beat box accompaniments or maybe other aspects of acappella arrangements, but there's something about the beauty of all those parts coming together into one harmonious sound that's heavenly to my ears.
(As a follow-up to my last post: I went over to the store where I originally bought my awesome earbuds as soon as it opened that morning. I lucked out and got the last pair of Jabra Rhythm headphones to replace the ones that weren't working. I'm VERY happy that worked out.)
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