Remembering Why
Yesterday I got to natter on about one of my favorite topics - the way we use music in music therapy sessions as our tool for helping. I am firmly in the music therapy philosophy camp that believes that music is a tool for our clients to use to move from one state of being to another. I also believe that music is an art form and experience, but in the context of music therapy, the therapist has to be able to view music as a tool to be used and shaped.
I was talking about being more conscious when it comes to making musical decisions. I think many of us adapt our music and our interactions to our clients intuitively, but my view is that we, as professionals, must become more direct when we speak about why music therapy is an important treatment modality. We cannot do this if we constantly speak about the benefit of music in terms that just make it seem like we have no plan but just go with the flow. We have to be able to describe what we are doing with the music in order to explain to others about our jobs. Is it any mystery why other folks think that a bedside musician is the same as a music therapist if we cannot differentiate in ways that people understand?
Here is the entire point of all of this.
The reason that I am a music therapist is that I can see how my clients change in the course of a session. I can see the effect of music on their outlook, their skill development, their relationships. I know that subtle changes in the music can make significant differences in effectiveness. I know that I often go with my gut when it comes to musical decisions, but I also know the science behind my modality. I have studied the literature about how music affects change in the human body. I know that changing the tempo of any musical stimulus that I present will change aspects of my client...or audience...or anyone within earshot. Because I know the science behind my modality, I can make predictions and decisions. Without that foundation, I am just shooting blindly and hoping that I find the right music to help someone do something that they want to do.
I could natter on and on about this, but I will stop here.
I was talking about being more conscious when it comes to making musical decisions. I think many of us adapt our music and our interactions to our clients intuitively, but my view is that we, as professionals, must become more direct when we speak about why music therapy is an important treatment modality. We cannot do this if we constantly speak about the benefit of music in terms that just make it seem like we have no plan but just go with the flow. We have to be able to describe what we are doing with the music in order to explain to others about our jobs. Is it any mystery why other folks think that a bedside musician is the same as a music therapist if we cannot differentiate in ways that people understand?
Here is the entire point of all of this.
The reason that I am a music therapist is that I can see how my clients change in the course of a session. I can see the effect of music on their outlook, their skill development, their relationships. I know that subtle changes in the music can make significant differences in effectiveness. I know that I often go with my gut when it comes to musical decisions, but I also know the science behind my modality. I have studied the literature about how music affects change in the human body. I know that changing the tempo of any musical stimulus that I present will change aspects of my client...or audience...or anyone within earshot. Because I know the science behind my modality, I can make predictions and decisions. Without that foundation, I am just shooting blindly and hoping that I find the right music to help someone do something that they want to do.
I could natter on and on about this, but I will stop here.
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