Persephone Chapter Four - Dreaming of a Different Way of Doing Things

DISCLAIMER: The thoughts that I'm putting together in this work of fiction are informed by several things - first, that the profession of music therapy is on the verge of a change brought about by several factors, including that of our professional organizations and membership demands; second, that this pandemic is changing how we "usually do things" in ways that will linger far after our stay-at-home orders do; and third, I like writing, and this seems to be a good time for a story.

These thoughts are not based on much reality - just glimpses into possible future situations and possibilities. I am very interested in what you think - how do you think we will act as music therapists in the near future? What about the distant future? Do you think our profession will be changing based on the things we are learning about this pandemic? Do you think it will remain the same? Do you think that I am completely full of baloney and that this is a frivolous waste of time? Let me know in the comments!

CHAPTER FOUR

Dr. Licar continued to lecture, and Persephone wrote on her desktop. There would be weekly quizzes on readings. There would be tests of information synthesis every fourth Friday - on both the readings and lecture materials. Lab assignments would include essays, papers, simulations, and group leadership opportunities. Cohort assignments would include several original compositions with presentations and therapeutic music experience development based on specific populations. Students were expected to do approximately 6 hours of work away from class per week. 

"So far, so good," thought Persephone. The work was equivalent to her undergraduate experiences and could be done with some creative time management.

The prose from the podium changed. Dr. Licar was starting her lecture about the course content.

"Throughout all known cultures, times, and organizations, we have found evidence of music. Where humans have lived, there has been music. Music is part of celebration, of ritual, of grief. Music invades and permeates most of our waking hours and is important to many of us for many different reasons. This course will cover the ways humans and music interact and intersect from the perspective of health and wellness. We will discuss the role of music as a treatment modality through the framework of the medical model of treatment, the educational model, the humanistic model. The most important lens for our course today, however, is that of trauma and resilience."

As Dr. Licar continued to speak, Persephone scribbled on her desktop with each of her styluses. She had one for regular writing, another for highlighting, and the third for music composition. Her note taking process was one that she had developed during the last years of her first degree program when she had been taking cognitive psychology, advanced music theory, and her best class of all, sociology of music and human behavior. She found that shifting between writing and highlighted offered her a way to take notes that included doodles, arrows, words, and annotations on pictures offered by the lecturer. Her music stylus was never really far away from her because music would pop into her head at any moment. Persephone had found that the most efficient way to get those music events out of her head was to write them down as soon as possible. Otherwise, the song snippets would just stay there, repeating over and over again until the volume swelled. Persephone kept taking notes until the hour was over.

It was time to move into cohort time, so Persephone packed up her bag and moved to the next room on her course list. She filed through the hallways with the other people from her section until they reached their destination, Room 311.

Room 311 was a smaller room - only 200 seats in this room. Persephone found her desk, again labeled with her number, signed in, and waited for the course to begin.

The rest of the day included meeting her small group leader and the twenty peers that she would spend time with during the semester. They all had the same coursework, so Persephone figured that they had similar interests, skills, and competencies.

Her schedule included the first meeting of her laboratory section where she participated in a series of polls and preference surveys. She then moved to the music lab where her smaller cohort engaged in a jam session using the instruments provided. Clinical musicianship looked like it would be the best type of class - full of music! Tomorrow would include her repertoire and clinical observation classes.

She left the music therapy building for the walk back to her living quarters. It was time to move into study mode since she had several chapters to read for Dr. Licar's class, reflection essays to write on her reading for lab, and six songs to memorize by Wednesday for clinical musicianship. 

Classes were finally underway.