By Tabitha Evans Moore
Editor & Publisher

LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — The Lynchburg Swimming Pool is trading cannonballs for crystal singing bowls — for one evening, anyway.

Asè Apothecary Sound Sanctuary will host an outdoor floating sound bath at the Lynchburg Pool located at 119 Boonville Highway on Thursday, July 30. Participants will float on air mattresses under the evening sky while a practitioner plays crystal singing bowls and other instruments at the water’s edge. Doors open at 6:15 p.m., with the session running 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are $60 per person, and only 20 spots are available. Each ticket includes a floating air mattress, blanket, pillow and a sleep mask to keep, along with ambient lighting and an optional sage cleansing before the session. Reservations are available by clicking here.

So what exactly is a sound bath? No soap involved — the “bath” refers to being immersed in sound. A practitioner plays resonant instruments, most often crystal or Tibetan singing bowls, producing sustained tones and vibrations while participants lie still, usually with eyes closed. It’s less a concert than a guided rest: the format borrows from meditation traditions, with the sound giving a restless mind something to settle on.

The floating version adds a twist that’s part physics, part comfort. Sound travels more than four times faster through water than through air, and because the human body is itself mostly water — roughly 60 percent for the average adult — practitioners say the vibrations from the bowls can be felt as much as heard. Floating also takes pressure off joints and muscles, which is why float therapy has become its own wellness category.

As for the science: the research on sound baths is young but not empty. A frequently cited observational study from researchers at the University of California, San Diego followed 62 adults through Tibetan singing bowl meditation sessions and found participants reported significantly less tension, anger, fatigue and depressed mood afterward — with the biggest drop in tension among first-timers. The researchers described the practice as a feasible, low-cost tool for easing tension and anxiety.

The honest caveat: that study had no control group, so it can’t separate the bowls themselves from the simple act of lying still and breathing slowly for an hour — which is itself well documented to calm the nervous system. Larger controlled trials haven’t yet been done. In other words, science can confirm people tend to walk out of sound baths feeling better; it’s still working on exactly why.

For $60 and an hour under a July sky, some Moore Countians may not need the mechanism settled first. For more information, visit the Asè Apothecary Sound Sanctuary or Lynchburg Swimming Pool pages on Facebook. Asè Apothecary is a locally-owned, holistic store located in Shelbyville. They sell organic holistic healing alternatives and handcrafted products from teas, tinctures, skin care, seamoss, elderberry syrup, raw herbs, roots, and more. •

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