TME Tuesday: Gonna Carve a Pumpkin

'Tis the season for pumpkin-type things. Personally, I don't like anything about pumpkins except for their shape, but many others love pumpkins, so here is a pumpkin-themed Therapeutic Music Experience (TME). Enjoy!!

Therapeutic Music Experience

Mary Jane Landaker, MME, MT-BC

Gonna Carve a Pumpkin 

Purpose: To address recognition of emotion; discussion of emotional states; holiday reference

Source: © 2008 by Mary Jane Landaker, MME, MT-BC. Inspired by Meredith Cairer, SMT from UMKC, Fall 2008.

Materials: Pumpkin visual aid with variety of pieces to use to display emotional affect; OPTIONAL: guitar

Environment: Variable – all group members able to see visual aid

Chant:

X                      X                   X                         X         X                 X         X

Gonna carve a pumpkin that matches my own mood. Two angry eyes, a big,

              X            X         X          X             X          X             

smiling mouth, and a nose that goes right here.     This pumpkin shows you my

X

mood!

Procedure: R = Reinforcement opportunities; C = Redirection/Cue opportunities; A = Assessment

1.      C=display the pumpkin visual aid with all of the pieces to group members

2.      C=start the chant, using body percussion to provide cue for engagement and entrainment

3.      A=assess whether group members are displaying entrainment behaviors such as movements or words coordinated with the beat

4.      R=reinforce group members who display entrainment behaviors, who chant, or who are keeping the body percussion beat

5.      C=demonstrate the goal of the TME by placing eyes, nose, and mouth onto the pumpkin

6.      C=ask group members to identify the emotion indicated by the facial expression on the pumpkin

7.      A=assess whether group members can identify the correct facial expression.

8.      C=If they cannot correctly identify the emotion, ask group members to explain why they chose the emotion

9.      R=reinforce all responses concerning emotions. Redirect any comments that are not part of an emotional response

10.  Repeat steps 2-9, inviting group members to take turns with the visual aid and expressing their own emotions

11.  Continue until group members show s/s of boredom or time runs out

Therapeutic Function of Music:

Music provides the structure and framework for the entire TME. The holiday theme offers a hook into the attention of group members. The lyrics offer the directives for how to successfully complete the TME. The pitch, rhythm, dynamics, tempo, and timbre can be easily adapted to engage the attention of group members.

Melody	Pitch	Rhythm	Dynamics	Harmony
None – chant format	Variable to engage attention of group members	Steady beat – quarter and eighth note patterns	Variable to engage attention of group members	None

Form	Tempo	Timbre	Style	Lyrics
Strophic	Variable to engage attention of group members – Best to use moderate tempo (70-85 bpm) if group member chanting is desired	Variable to engage attention of group members	Chant	Predictable with ability to personalize based on group member responses

Chart adapted from Hanson-Abromeit, D. (2010). A Closer Look at the Therapeutic Function of Music. Presentation at 2010 American Music Therapy Association National Conference: Cleveland, OH.

Adaptations:

·         Show group members specific emotions and ask them to make the pumpkin look like the targeted emotion

Extensions:

• Change music to illustrate different emotions – ask group members to make pumpkin look like the emotion conveyed by the music