There was no cheering, singing or acknowledgement of any kind when Sharon Corr played a recent concert in Barcelona.
The sound of silence as she performed was hardly surprising, as the audience was made up entirely of human embryos more accustomed to a diet of classical and heavy metal music.
The musician played the set on the violin while wearing surgical scrubs, after being invited to perform by the owners of the Institut Marquès fertility clinic in Barcelona as part of a campaign aimed at raising awareness of the positive impact musical vibrations can have on IVF fertilisation outcomes.
Embryos in the process of being fertilised in incubators at the clinic are exposed to musical microvibrations 24 hours a day, after internal studies first published in 2013 suggested that good vibrations during the IVF fertilisation process can help to increase the chances of success by up to 5 per cent.
According to the institute, the microvibrations stir the culture in which the egg swims, which produces a more homogeneous distribution of the nutrients the embryo needs while scattering toxic elements.
The clinic plays a mix of pop, classical and heavy metal music through the lab’s sound system.
Corr described the experience of playing in front of hundreds of embryos as “emotional”.
Her performance alongside Spanish guitarist Álex Ubago was also livestreamed to embryos in the process of being fertilised in incubators at other clinics run by the Institut Marquès, including one in Clane, Co Meath, and another in Rome.
“It was a very emotional experience,” Corr said afterwards. “It is great to think that possibly we can be part of the future, that we can make it change. I am so amazed about the whole process and how it works and yet, in a way, I am not surprised that music really helps the embryos to form.”
