PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Pain is a public health problem, a major driver of health care seeking and medication use, a major cause
of disability, and a key factor affecting quality of life and productivity. Music-based interventions (MBIs) including
music therapy (MT) are known to be effective for managing pain in several populations. However, substantial
gaps remain in understanding the mechanisms of action (e.g., cognitive, genomic, metabolomic, and neurologic)
by which MBIs influence pain. Barriers to advancing this mechanistic r esearch have included: 1) lack of
meaningful and inclusive collaboration between music therapists and mechanistic scientists; 2) inconsistent
application and definition of MBIs, patient-reported outcomes, and biological measures; and 3) lack of funding
and infrastructure to support interdisciplinary pilot projects.
This proposal seeks to establish a NEW collaborative network: Effective Network to advance Scientific
Evidence related to Mechanisms of music-Based interventions for pain and support coLlaborative Efforts
(ENSEMBLE) to advance collaborative research efforts investigating the mechanisms by which MBIs influence
various pain phenotypes. ENSEMBLE will be built on a foundation of well-integrated medical MT practice, strong
mechanistic science in integrative health and medicine (IHM), research investigating MT and biological
mechanisms of pain in SCD and the BraveNet Practice-Based Research Network. At the outset, SCD will serve
as the pain-related condition of interest given the expertise of ENSEMBLE team members at present and strong
preliminary data, but other pain conditions will be addressed in future years.
ENSEMBLE will be led by investigators from University Hospitals of Cleveland/Case Western Reserve
University, University of California Irvine, The Louis Armstrong Center for Music & Medicine, Icahn School of
Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Emory University. ENSEMBLE will establish a vibrant collaborative network of
music therapists, mechanistic scientists, music intervention researchers, IHM resear chers, and patient-advocacy
organizations.
The Specific Aims are to: (1) promote meaningful, inclusive, and interdisciplinary collaboration between
music therapists, mechanistic scientists, and IHM researchers; (2) develop a comprehensive framework for
conducting mechanistic studies in MBIs for pain management; and (3) advance multiple pilot projects
investigating novel biological mechanisms of action underlying the effects of MBIs for various pain phenotypes.
The IMPACT of ENSEMBLE will be instrumental in 1) promoting meaningful interdisciplinary dialogue; 2)
building multi-institutional capacity for initiating MBI research in pain management; 3) generating preliminary
data for future R21 or R34 grant proposals; 4) improving data infrastructure; 5) developing future MT clinician
researchers; 6) focusing future scientific efforts; and 7) disseminating best practices.
