Textbook of Complementary and Integrative Medicine

• abendmusik - A cultural term of German origin designating a series of evening musical performances, transposed into art therapy, clinical music therapy, and sleep management. In neuro-psychiatry protocols, the concept of abendmusik is used to describe structured interventions using relaxing, low-frequency music with steady rhythms, performed in the latter part of the day. The therapeutic purpose consists in reducing evening psychomotor agitation (sundowning syndrome found in dementias), inducing cortical relaxation, lowering cortisol levels, and facilitating the onset of sleep in patients with chronic anxiety or insomnia.