Feeling My Way Through Philosophy
Several months ago, one of my interns was getting ready to write her philosophy of music therapy. As all people do, she hopped on the internet to see what was out there about music therapy philosophy. She found a blog post about philosophy and started talking to me about what was in that post. Turns out, it was my blog! (She was disappointed in the post, by the way. It didn't give her a formula for writing a philosophy statement! Bwa-ha-ha! Foiled again by the ID!!! Anyway...)
Having a philosophical statement is important. Each one of us needs to know what we believe music can do in the lives of human beings, and we need to be able to articulate our belief in a coherent manner. Hence, the philosophy statement.
Now, if you are like my former intern and are looking for a formula for writing a philosophy statement, you are going to be disappointed. There is no formula for writing a statement of belief. You just have to start writing and then rearrange into a systematic series of statements that make sense with one another.
Here are some ideas to get you started...
I am reading my way through the philosophy of others. I've spent some time with Wigram, Bruscia, Gaston, Sears, Ayres, Dewey, Rogers, and many others. I am getting ready to dive into others. I am getting information about yet others. This is a way to inform my own knowledge about what music therapy is in different places, times, and venues around the world. I read in spurts and starts, only keeping myself ensconced in philosophy until my head starts to hurt. Then, I move on, returning only when I am mentally prepared to do so.
A philosophy statement is not meant to be a static idea. It is meant to move, grow, shift, expand, and contract. It is important to continue to feel your way towards your current philosophy, and it is perfectly normal to find that your outlook changes and moves during your career. It would be more disconcerting to find a therapist who clings to the same out-of-date ideas from his/her undergraduate coursework and who has not learned lessons from being a therapist.
Grow. Stretch. Learn. Change.
It's healthy.
Having a philosophical statement is important. Each one of us needs to know what we believe music can do in the lives of human beings, and we need to be able to articulate our belief in a coherent manner. Hence, the philosophy statement.
Now, if you are like my former intern and are looking for a formula for writing a philosophy statement, you are going to be disappointed. There is no formula for writing a statement of belief. You just have to start writing and then rearrange into a systematic series of statements that make sense with one another.
Here are some ideas to get you started...
- What do you believe about music?
- What do you believe about therapy?
- What do you believe is the role of the music therapist?
I am reading my way through the philosophy of others. I've spent some time with Wigram, Bruscia, Gaston, Sears, Ayres, Dewey, Rogers, and many others. I am getting ready to dive into others. I am getting information about yet others. This is a way to inform my own knowledge about what music therapy is in different places, times, and venues around the world. I read in spurts and starts, only keeping myself ensconced in philosophy until my head starts to hurt. Then, I move on, returning only when I am mentally prepared to do so.
A philosophy statement is not meant to be a static idea. It is meant to move, grow, shift, expand, and contract. It is important to continue to feel your way towards your current philosophy, and it is perfectly normal to find that your outlook changes and moves during your career. It would be more disconcerting to find a therapist who clings to the same out-of-date ideas from his/her undergraduate coursework and who has not learned lessons from being a therapist.
Grow. Stretch. Learn. Change.
It's healthy.
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