A long time ago I posted about ‘brown noise’ (as opposed to ‘white noise’) and how it can help people heal. Some of the links in the post came from one of my blogging buddies, M’Chels Musings. In her reply to the post, she wrote one of the funniest things I have ever received in a comment: ” I can’t handle dolphin 🐬 noises” [with a cute little leaping dolphin included].
Now, to be fair, I knew exactly what she was trying to say – there is a squeaky high-frequency sound that they make that I’m sure I wouldn’t like either, but it made me laugh that there might actually be people out there listening to dolphins as part of their healing program…
After that post, M’Chel and I also got to talking about whale music.
When I was a child of the 70s I remember we had a whale song record that I thought was… kinda cool… kinda strange.
Now that I listen to these sounds again as an adult, I like it… it’s quiet gentle and haunting… but… it’s still a bit strange… foreign even (if Mother Nature can ever be a ‘foreign’ language).
Verdict?
Whale music is not really for me.
It was too irregular, with no rhythm that I could hold onto and anticipate what was coming next. That said, if it’s just background ‘white noise’ then I quite liked the serene-vibe of it… but, truth be told, would probably still prefer some ‘classical chill’ instead.
[Here’s my Spotify channel – Healing Music for Migraines – with more than 8,000 saves, it seems to be helping people relax and feel less lonely during a migraine attack.]
OK then – given that I am NOT representative of everyone, here’s a few links for you to try:
First up, an (8 hour) YouTube version I found and listened to for several hours when I was sick in bed. I think the cover image is AI generated… and I’m tempted to say the whale music is as well… there’s a repetitive nature to the sounds that makes me pretty sure the 8 hours is actually only ten minutes repeated on loop. Interestingly, many of the comments claimed the vibe was terrifying… I only heard serenity (albeit on repeat)… oh and I can’t confirm or deny, but one of the comments suggested that the fixed image of the whale winks at you every 2 hours… wink wink.
[Video source: 8 Hours of Whale Sounds Deep Underwater for Sleep and Relaxation]
Here are three others that I haven’t listened to all the way through (they’re about an hour each), but I REALLY like the graphics behind them (way more than Blinky the Whale (sorry Blinky)):
[Video source: Ultimate Deep Sea Healing]
[Video source: Whale Codes 396Hz – Deep Emotional Healing – Crystal Ocean Sounds]
[Video Source: Whale Song Ocean Ambient]
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The last one has a lovely comment: “I’ve been feeling really disconnected from myself and this has been helping me ground. Thank you ❤.” I love a good mixed metaphor. In this case, underwater music helping you become grounded… but I do get it; Nature’s sounds reconnect us to Earth and help us find our feet, as it were.
Anyway – may your week ahead be both dreamy and grounded, with or without Blinky and his friends.
Take care taking care, Linda x
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PS – slightly off topic – I found a website that outlines some movies where whales make an appearance: Cinema of Cetacean Communication: 10 Essential Films.
2 stand out examples include: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) where “The crew of the Enterprise travels back to 1986 to retrieve humpback whales, the only species capable of answering an alien probe’s acoustic transmission. Sound designer Mark Mangini layered humpback recordings with industrial metal grinding to create the probe’s ‘voice,’ ensuring it sounded both biological and terrifyingly mechanical.”
Also, realer and sadder, Sonic Sea (2016); “An investigative look at how industrial noise pollution is devastating whale populations. The film includes a rare visual representation of ‘acoustic masking,’ showing how a single shipping vessel can shrink a whale’s communication range from 1,000 miles to under 10 miles. […] It focuses on the ‘blindness’ caused by noise. The viewer learns that for a whale, a loud sonar blast isn’t just a noise; it is a physical assault that destroys their ability to navigate and find mates.”
UGH
Now we all need to go listen to some whale songs to feel better… sorry.
The Mindful Migraine 
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