The Online Conference for Music Therapy - 2015 coming soon!
One of the things that I like to do is to work with other music therapists doing music therapy things. I often interact with MTs so I can learn more about what we do as a collective (do we sound like the Borg?). What you do as a therapist in your particular environment fascinates me as it is probably COMPLETELY different from what I do as a therapist.
As I've been a therapist, I have attended two world congresses. These experiences did a great job of opening my eyes to the differences between not only therapists, but the different philosophical viewpoints of therapists in other countries. I have realized that I approach music therapy in an American-centric manner, definitely influenced by the founders here in the United States. The world congresses of music therapy really opened up my eyes to the fact that there are different views of how music works that are extremely different from my own. The problem that I have found is that congresses are too short and too crammed to really engage in deeper understanding of the concepts and philosophies shared by others.
Several years ago, I read about an opportunity. A Canadian music therapist, John Lawrence, had an idea and needed others to assist him in getting the idea off the ground. I decided that the idea had merit, so I contacted him and ended up being the Treasurer (not the job I had in mind, by the way - I just wanted to be on a committee, not on THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE!). I started into a venture that has now encompassed three online conferences with therapists from all over the world!
OCMT (the Online Conference for Music Therapy) is a 24-hour conference held on your computer. We seek international music therapists to present and attend. We often ask the big names of music therapy to present - our keynote speakers are pretty impressive, and so are the presenters that offer information to attendees. Our audience is getting bigger and bigger. There are facebook pages (https://www.facebook.com/groups/ocmt2012/) and a dedicated website (http://www.onlineconferenceformusictherapy.com/). We have a growing number of international music therapists that work on coordinating this conference.
The best thing for me about OCMT? I get to interact with therapists from Australia, Bahrain, England, Norway, India, Taiwan, Canada, and other countries - all from my own home! I get to wear my pajamas (if I want, and I'm starting to buy new ones to celebrate OCMT!), and my circle of music therapy friends is growing exponentially. These conferences have increased my knowledge of music therapy and have given me opportunities to talk to therapists from many different places, thoughts, and practices. I feel more connected to the global community than ever. This is a great experience for me!
If you haven't heard about OCMT, please check it out - you may have to ask for permission to join the Facebook page, but please do. It is worth it! Alternately, you can contact me if you want more information about being a volunteer or an attendee.
Hope to see you on February 7th (or February 6th or 8th depending on which side of the globe you live on) for this wonderful experience.
As I've been a therapist, I have attended two world congresses. These experiences did a great job of opening my eyes to the differences between not only therapists, but the different philosophical viewpoints of therapists in other countries. I have realized that I approach music therapy in an American-centric manner, definitely influenced by the founders here in the United States. The world congresses of music therapy really opened up my eyes to the fact that there are different views of how music works that are extremely different from my own. The problem that I have found is that congresses are too short and too crammed to really engage in deeper understanding of the concepts and philosophies shared by others.
Several years ago, I read about an opportunity. A Canadian music therapist, John Lawrence, had an idea and needed others to assist him in getting the idea off the ground. I decided that the idea had merit, so I contacted him and ended up being the Treasurer (not the job I had in mind, by the way - I just wanted to be on a committee, not on THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE!). I started into a venture that has now encompassed three online conferences with therapists from all over the world!
OCMT (the Online Conference for Music Therapy) is a 24-hour conference held on your computer. We seek international music therapists to present and attend. We often ask the big names of music therapy to present - our keynote speakers are pretty impressive, and so are the presenters that offer information to attendees. Our audience is getting bigger and bigger. There are facebook pages (https://www.facebook.com/groups/ocmt2012/) and a dedicated website (http://www.onlineconferenceformusictherapy.com/). We have a growing number of international music therapists that work on coordinating this conference.
The best thing for me about OCMT? I get to interact with therapists from Australia, Bahrain, England, Norway, India, Taiwan, Canada, and other countries - all from my own home! I get to wear my pajamas (if I want, and I'm starting to buy new ones to celebrate OCMT!), and my circle of music therapy friends is growing exponentially. These conferences have increased my knowledge of music therapy and have given me opportunities to talk to therapists from many different places, thoughts, and practices. I feel more connected to the global community than ever. This is a great experience for me!
If you haven't heard about OCMT, please check it out - you may have to ask for permission to join the Facebook page, but please do. It is worth it! Alternately, you can contact me if you want more information about being a volunteer or an attendee.
Hope to see you on February 7th (or February 6th or 8th depending on which side of the globe you live on) for this wonderful experience.
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