Theme and Variations: Part Four
This will be the last in this series of posts (at least, for the current moment). I've enjoyed the thought experiment of making this analogy, and it seems to make sense to me as a way to think of music therapists and the differences we have between us with an eye to the similarities that are also present.
I went to an educational program that was steeped in the tradition of one specific theoretical practice of music therapy, but we were introduced to the themes of all of the other ideas out there in the world. We were never told that our way of doing things was the right way of doing things. We were told that the client was the focus and that the way of approaching therapy with the client should change to accommodate differences in clients. Nothing was off-limits, but our professors recognized their own clinical skills and only felt comfortable teaching us what they knew and believed.
Over the years, I've been accosted by people who were taught one and only one theme. They were taught that the theme I learned was "wrong," "ineffective," and "ridiculous." I've been told that therapists who practice within the theme I was taught are "only interested in the surface and do not connect with their clients within the music." I've been told that, if the speaker had known where I lived, we would not have engaged in a conversation about competency-based education. People have looked at my name tag and location at conference and then actively ignored me during conversations, making loud statements about how silly it is when others do not practice the way they practice. This both fascinates and terrifies me.
Imagine if there was only one musical theme in the world. Only one way to make music and we all had to play only that music forever. There would be no room for variations, for exploration, for interpretation. Our profession would not be present. There would be no need for us - we would only be able to use one series of sounds. Where's the fun in that?
I celebrate the different themes that we have in music therapy. I celebrate the differences between how I approach my clients and how the therapist down the road would approach those same clients. I celebrate the variation of my interns and the way they affect my own way of thinking about music, therapy, and me.
Something I think about quite often is the continued need for us to share our thoughts, ideas, themes, and variations with the greater community of music therapists out in the world. That is one of the reasons that I write this blog - it is a way to share my particular thoughts with others - and it continues to be one of the things that I strive towards in my music therapy journey.
Go out there and find your theme and celebrate your variations!
I went to an educational program that was steeped in the tradition of one specific theoretical practice of music therapy, but we were introduced to the themes of all of the other ideas out there in the world. We were never told that our way of doing things was the right way of doing things. We were told that the client was the focus and that the way of approaching therapy with the client should change to accommodate differences in clients. Nothing was off-limits, but our professors recognized their own clinical skills and only felt comfortable teaching us what they knew and believed.
Over the years, I've been accosted by people who were taught one and only one theme. They were taught that the theme I learned was "wrong," "ineffective," and "ridiculous." I've been told that therapists who practice within the theme I was taught are "only interested in the surface and do not connect with their clients within the music." I've been told that, if the speaker had known where I lived, we would not have engaged in a conversation about competency-based education. People have looked at my name tag and location at conference and then actively ignored me during conversations, making loud statements about how silly it is when others do not practice the way they practice. This both fascinates and terrifies me.
Imagine if there was only one musical theme in the world. Only one way to make music and we all had to play only that music forever. There would be no room for variations, for exploration, for interpretation. Our profession would not be present. There would be no need for us - we would only be able to use one series of sounds. Where's the fun in that?
I celebrate the different themes that we have in music therapy. I celebrate the differences between how I approach my clients and how the therapist down the road would approach those same clients. I celebrate the variation of my interns and the way they affect my own way of thinking about music, therapy, and me.
Something I think about quite often is the continued need for us to share our thoughts, ideas, themes, and variations with the greater community of music therapists out in the world. That is one of the reasons that I write this blog - it is a way to share my particular thoughts with others - and it continues to be one of the things that I strive towards in my music therapy journey.
Go out there and find your theme and celebrate your variations!
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