Music of Well-Being: The Role of Different Musical Features in Mood Regulation and Depression Alleviation

This paper examines the secret of music therapy as an effective therapeutic method for alleviating depression, a mental health disorder that spans globally. Recognizing the existence of diversified musical preferences, personal past-life experiences, and cultural influences across different people, this paper aims to elicit a framework providing universal cues for everyone seeking self-curing from depression or professional therapeutics to choose the right music as the antidote. Specifically, this paper conducts a literature review on the potential effect of mood regulation of major musical features, as well as a detailed analysis based on two models correlating music, mood, and depression alleviation. The conclusion part exhausts detailed suggestions for people with different emotional management purposes and with different personal traits regarding music selection for their therapeutic purposes.