Despite its supposed focus on joy and peace, the American holiday season comes with enough stress to warrant PSAs from medical experts. There is enormous pressure to give the perfect gift (at the lowest possible price) to everyone on our lists, not to mention meal planning and countless other holiday obligations. The less-than-magical frenzy kicks off on Black Friday or even earlier, and it doesn’t end until New Year’s Day. That’s why you may want to consider trying a healthy new Black Friday tradition: enjoying a concert with friends and family.

Why Concerts Are a Great Way To Celebrate the Holidays

Here are some ways that attending concerts can help you regain some control over how you experience the holiday season:

• De-stressing. Listening to music has been proven to reduce stress and even improve brain function. You can elevate, energize, or relax your mood by making appropriate listening choices. Choosing the types of music performances you enjoy most can also help to balance out the objectionable music that you encounter on the car radio and in stores and TV commercials.
• Getting in the holiday spirit. If sacred or secular festive music works well to get you in a celebratory mood, consider attending a special concert featuring traditional holiday songs. Listening to music performed live can be more intellectually and emotionally stimulating than listening to recorded songs.
• Connecting with your community. The holidays are meant to be a time for connecting with humankind, yet many people feel more isolated during the winter season than at other times of year. Attending a concert either on your own or with others allows you to participate in a communal event. Besides allowing for social interactions, concerts can remind us how much we have in common with everyone else in the audience.
• Supporting local artists and venues. You may not have thought about it this way, but attending a concert helps to keep music artists and venue staff employed and feeling appreciated. When you go to a concert, you give the gift of respect, recognition, and revenue. If you eat or shop locally before or after the concert, you’re supporting your community’s economy as well.
• Making meaningful memories. Perhaps the biggest irony of the American holiday season is that we spend so much of it hacking our way through bleary-eyed shopping and menial tasks. Yet when you make time to attend a concert with friends and loved ones, you make time for mindful thinking, bonding experiences, priceless photos, and—if you do it right—actual moments of joy and peace.

Enjoy Stress-Free Holidays With Main Street Crossing

Main Street Crossing in Tomball, Texas is one of the best small music venues in the Houston metro area. MSC hosts country, Americana, folk, blues, and other types of music artists in an intimate setting: the furthest seat is only 45 feet from the stage. MSC additionally functions as a multi-use venue for church services, concerts, and more located in Tomball. Check out our event calendar and enjoy entertainment in support of good causes!

MSC wishes you a happy and stress-free holiday season. We make it easy to set up recurring donations on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis. Give today!