People's mental health has been deteriorating as a result of the ongoing epidemic, and Koreans are increasingly resorting to various musical genres to unwind.
In Korea, two applications, Kokkiri and Mabo, are attempting to break into the ambient music industry with their offerings.
Users' emotional states are represented by themes in the applications, which range from worry and despair to rage and sleepiness. In addition to meditation sounds and auditory training sessions, there are subcategories available. Schedulers are provided in the app to help users to keep track of their playlists and moods while they listen to music.
Lee Yoon-jeong, deputy head of the communications team at Kokkiri, a firm that provides audio treatment through mobile apps, told The Korea Herald that its customers vary from adults in their early 20s to those in their late 60s.
The firm, which now ranks first in the Korean market in terms of user numbers, was created in 2019 and seeks to partner with technology companies and conduct online festivals in order to cultivate the sense of camaraderie provided by its service.
As a result of this collaboration, Mabo, an audio therapy startup that was created in 2016 and has over 250,000 active users, has formed a partnership with mental health professionals and music therapists.
Despite the fact that "you can readily locate ASMR sounds and music labelled as relaxation themes on YouTube," Park Jin-young, chief marketing officer of Mabo, explained that "the bulk of such scores are not scientifically verified (to be calming), and consequently, their claims are quite subjective." "Instead of relying on celebrity voices or cooperating with well-known bands, we place a strong emphasis on building expertise in the programs we offer," Park continued.
Companies are becoming increasingly interested in the mental health and wellbeing of their employees, and Mabo is expanding its membership base to include business subscriptions to meet this rising need.
The association between sleeping patterns and certain sounds has been the focus of Jeon Yoon-study han's at Kyunghee University's department of postmodern music, which he has been conducting for the past three years.
Jeon told The Korea Herald that meditation and ambient music, whether organically recorded or created, "typically lack net arrangement or organized melodies, and this combats our exhaustion from today's hit songs, which are characterized by particular beats and formulae." In addition, Jeon explained that "our brain waves react to noises in certain ways, and this forms our mental stability."
According to Jeon, the discipline has the potential to develop into a distinct sector among the many music genres. He also believes that the field offers several opportunities for study into related fields.
