Final answer:
Music therapy approaches can include measurable results despite the complexity and subjectivity of music. Studies have shown universal emotional recognition across cultures, and advancements in the field aim to quantify the benefits of music therapy.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that none of the music therapy approaches include measurable results due to the complexity and subjectivity of music, is not entirely accurate. Though music therapy does deal with the complex and subjective nature of music, there have been various studies and approaches within the field that aim to obtain measurable results. For instance, music therapy has been observed to address psychosocial health needs, which, although more challenging to measure than physical health needs, are nonetheless important in the context of therapeutic outcomes.
In the realm of music perception and its impact on individuals, interdisciplinary studies, such as those in ethnomusicology or perceptual psychology, have shown that despite cultural differences, there can be universal emotional recognition in music, as demonstrated by Thomas Fritz's study with the Mafa tribe. Additionally, anecdotal evidence from practitioners like Robert Gupta, who merged his passions for music and social justice through music therapy, suggests that the impact of music therapy can indeed be profound, even if conventional medicine might not yield the same results.
While it is true that quantifying the pleasure or happiness derived from music can present difficulties, and that one person's music may be perceived as another person's noise, the field of music therapy continually works towards creating frameworks and instruments, as in the work of Tod Machover, that aim to extend and measure the benefits of musical expression across a wide spectrum of human experience.