Scientific Project: Health Prevention at Musicians' Fingertips

Anne-Violette Bruyneel, the app takes a holistic approach to physical and mental health. Why is that important?

In the literature, preventive measures typically address either physical health or mental health, but not both together. However, as several experts have shown, what works best is taking a holistic view of health. Our approach combines all these aspects—noise levels, pain, stress, social connections, and work organization. We know, for example, that musicians always want to push themselves further to improve, even if it hurts, whereas athletes take a more structured approach, alternating between training with well-defined goals, performances, and rest periods, because that’s what the body needs. Another example: many musicians get little physical activity, even though it would help them enormously in managing stress and emotions.

You talk about prevention and «sustainable health.» Could this be a shift in perspective?

Exactly. It’s not just about taking action once an injury is already advanced and is hindering the ability to perform at a high level. We aim for sustainable health, which involves promoting good health throughout one’s life despite intense practice—and, above all, preventing pain from occurring in the first place. We’re well aware of the risk factors for musicians and students today. The challenge is to shift the culture from curative to preventive healthcare. That’s where it all comes down to.

What's the point of using an app?

The main advantage is that it provides personalized advice. If a student has an exam tomorrow and is feeling stressed, they can open the app, self-assess their stress level, and choose a few exercises to do on their own. Musicians travel a lot and are rarely in the same place: having an expert healthcare professional on hand at all times is difficult. The HarMoNie app provides access to advice at any time—everything is right there on their phone, even when they’re abroad. We wanted this tool to be simple, accessible, and to offer exercises that can be done anywhere without any equipment. However, while the app can facilitate the early detection of mental health issues, it is not intended to provide therapy. Therefore, if issues are identified, students are referred to healthcare professionals or to the HES-SO Geneva Health Center, located at HEM-GE.

How did students and professors react to the app?

Many teachers have learned through pain and stress, and believe that you have to go through this to perform well: «It’s good that you’re stressed—that way you stay focused,» «If you’re in pain, it means you’ve worked hard»… But attitudes are changing—and, above all, students« expectations have changed. In the past, it was almost taboo to talk to your professor about health issues; the »no pain, no gain« mentality was the norm. Today, students are reaching out to their teachers: »I feel tense when I play a lot—what should I do?” So the teachers are happy to have an app with concrete suggestions. Starting in September, we’ll be holding information and outreach sessions to encourage regular use of the app at HEM-GE.