Plants dig sustainable wood, and death metal

If you frequently find yourself smiling and nodding in crowded bars because you can't hear what your friends are saying, you might want to consider becoming a musician. No, not because musicians get lucky, but because musical training has been shown to prime the ear and make it easier to pick out speech against a noisy background. Music gives us a universal language, and an opportunity to harmonize with nature.

From the ivory in piano keys to the rosewood in guitars, components of musical instruments that have not been manufactured in a sustainable manner can contribute to habitat destruction, soil erosion and a loss of diversity in both plant and animal species. Approximately 30 percent of hardwood products imported into the U.S. come from suspicious or illegal sources, according to the U.S. International Trade Commission. Makers and players of modern musical instruments can protect the environment by choosing materials that come from renewable resources, local artisans and recycled parts. Crafty types can build their own instruments from scratch and play with solar-powered amplifiers. If electronics don't suit you, you can stop by the grocery store instead and turn the produce section into an orchestra.

Not everyone has the time or inclination to craft a cucumber trumpet, but you can always buy the real thing. Smoke Box Bob sells hand-crafted cigar box guitars, which come from reused, recycled and re-purposed materials and look artful enough to hang on the wall. When purchasing from national retailers, look for products that bear the Forest Stewardship Council trademark, which indicates wood from approved sources of timber. The highest-quality timber often comes from slow growing, older trees, and their valued resonance and beauty has driven at least 70 tree species to near extinction in the wild, according to the Global Trees organization. The Rainforest Alliance marks sustainable, ecologically responsible woods with a SmartWood label.

Music has a profound impact on our bodies. Learning to play an instrument actually adds new neural connections in the brain and improves memory, attention span and foreign language skills, Northwestern University researchers conclude from a compilation of studies from around the world. Researchers from the University of Florence in Italy have found that a daily dose of classical, Celtic or Indian music lowers blood pressure in people with hypertension. Even plants benefit from music. Mythbusters introduced greenhouse plants to a variety of sounds, from classical riffs to silence, to test the theory that talking to plants helps them grow. After three months, the plants exposed to heavy metal showed the most vigorous growth.

The first rhythm we know is the beat of our own hearts. Whether we stamp our feet to drums or strum the blues, we find common ground in good vibrations. Music nourishes the soul, so make your sure your instruments nourish the planet.