Muscle Testing (Kinesiology) Composition

Muscle reflex testing, also known as muscle kinesiology, is a technique used by some alternative medicine practioners. At its most basic, the muscle kinesiologist tests the strength of a patient's muscle group (usually the shoulder) or in some cases their own muscle group as an A/B test to determine how the body responds to the suggestion of a particular remedy or course of remedies.

In essence the practioner 'asks the body' whether it agrees or disagrees with a particular remedy.

It is frequently used for determining allergies and, as controversial as it might be, the technique is often used for more than determining nutritional or supplemental requirements...

Applied to music composition, perhaps it is not so controversial. Random, for example, became a  common practise in 20th century to determine music composition (like pulling notes and note durations from cards in a hat) (See John Cage, Marcel Duchamp etc)

Applied to music construction the composer similarly 'asks the body' what note, chord, rhythmic duration should come next in a composition through the use of muscle testing!

First the technique of muscle kinesiology (muscle testing) must be learnt. (Search the internet for more information).

Once the muscle testing technique is aquired the composer (anybody really) can then sit at the piano, any other instrument, or a sheet of manuscript, and then ask the body "Is the first sound a chord?" (Test Yes/No) If no: "Is the first sound a note?" "Is the first note 'C'?" "Is the first note 'C'#?" "Is the note duration a crochet? "Is the time signature 4/4 time?" "Is the tempo faster than 100bpm? etc and continues testing and making a mark on the manuscript each time the body responds in the affirmative.

This process continues until the composition, or melody, is complete. "Is the composition complete?"

I composed several pieces using this technique as a music student in the 1980s and thought to document the approach here.

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