Song Conversion Sunday: Taking the Song Into the Session - Developing TMEs
In case you haven't caught the most recent song choice, I selected Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls for this round of posts. I like the song - it is part of my musical development - and it is probably one of the only Goo Goo Dolls songs that I know (but I am absolutely HOPELESS when it comes to identifying musicians who sing particular songs - I would have to look at their entire discography to see if I know any of their other songs...but I digress). It practically leapt off the page when I opened the book, and then it was playing on the radio or at the top of a playlist or came up when I shuffled my entire library. I think my selection was meant to be.
The first category of TME is the obvious one. These are TMEs where the music itself may not be the focus of the experience. Rather, the music plays an accompanying role in the therapeutic experience. These are TMEs like Name That Tune, ribbon dancing, playing the melody on an instrument. These types of TMEs are places where new music can be introduced in a casual manner to increase familiarity and to use as a tool. If I were to include the song, Iris, by the Goo Goo Dolls into my music therapy clinic, I would probably start here (and I actually did so during the last week of school - it was part of my Name That Tune stumper list!). The students weren't familiar with the song, but the staff members were. It was a good choice for my high school groups - they got to see their staff members enjoy some music that was unfamiliar to them at first listen, but they also realized that there was some value in the music itself. By the end of the game, most of my clients were indicating some entrainment to the music - toes were tapping, some rocking, some singing along. The next time I bring in this song, there will be more familiarity and more recognition from the clients. I can then take the song into the next level.
My students do not do very well with lyric analysis. It is a skill that has never really worked for me in my clinic. I know that what I do as therapist has lots to do with how lyric analysis works in my setting, but I have tried this particular technique over and over again with limited success. I do not spend lots of time talking about specific songs - some of the group members would not engage, others would over engage, and yet others would move into conversations that would not be relevant to the music or the task at hand. I have to find very concrete songs for analyzation, and Iris just doesn't fit the bill for my clients.
The song, however, would work pretty well for lyric analysis with other groups of clients. The theme of the song can be interpreted in several different ways, so it could be an excellent starting point for conversation as well as for discussions about relationship roles and healthy relationship processes. Wikipedia (I know, I know) states that the song was written for the movie, City of Angels, and the lyrics really do mirror the movie, so I believe it. The song is about sacrificial love and the need to be with one particular person. That is the theme of the movie as well. I see lots of material for discussions about codependency and obsession and romantic love and all sorts of situations.
Lyrics are not the only thing that happens during the song, so there are many other uses for this particular piece of music besides lyric analysis and background music use. For this, I dive into my musical element analysis chart.
Now is where I take the specific clients that I have, and I start to shape the music to those folks. It is essential for me to do this particular step as every client and every group is different from the others, so I have to think about my clients as I take this particular piece of music and decide how to use it in our interactions. I do try to adapt the song or the TME to fit what I think my clients need in every moment of our sessions.
So, with my students who are able to engage in abstract thought - we may do a portion of my lyric analysis protocol. Notice that I said "a portion." Lyric analysis at my facility does not look like lyric analysis in other programs. We may spend a bit of time looking at the words while listening to the music. After that, we might talk about the song's "story." That would probably be more than enough for one session, so the next session might include some more listening and some more discussion. We would do this for quite a while. It would fit into a "Healthy Relationship" group better than my classroom groups where students are just jumbled together without concern for therapeutic need.
With my students who are unable to express their abstract thoughts, Iris could be a good song for structured movement - especially if I focus on the music without the words. We could engage in rocking with some choreography. It may be a good warm-up for a group of students who seem tired or it may function well as a cool-down after an active session. I've found that pieces in 3/4 tend to assist my clients in entraining to a beat after lots of motor engagement. I wonder if others see that as well.
For my students who are interested in learning how to play something, this song may not be a beginner song, but there are elements that make it accessible. The steady pulse continues throughout the song, and the chord structure progresses in a predictable pattern. I could see this being an Orff arrangement for an Orff ensemble (I wish I had one of those started at my facility - that would be SO fun!).
This part of the process is always gratifying and overwhelming at the same time. There are so many ways that a piece of music can be used with specific clients that there is no limit to what can be done. I write my ideas down in my database and then start from there.
What could you do with this song with your clients? Let me know in the comments!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iris_(song)
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