In the previous column, What "Makes" a Music Therapist, Michele Forinash has raised the common concern for the music therapy teachers which evolves as we educate and train students in academia. It also has been my concern how we, as their teachers and mentors, guide them to become better music therapists in the limited time during the course of education/curriculum.
As time pass by and as I reflect upon my own process of becoming a music therapist, I think that the student’s ability to establish a new perspective towards his/her own music is a key issue in developing the capacity and the potential to become a qualified therapist. Often music therapy students come into the program with various issues related their own music, either not being content or having overly conscious attitude towards using the music fully, etc. Such issues elicit tension in using music effectively and even more when it comes to the clinical settings.
Although we all are born with a music child in us, somewhere along growing up many of us become inhibited using music freely. With this in mind, I have thought about what may help the students to grow out of this and really be able to use the music fully and therapeutically. I also thought about what would help them to develop positive attitudes or perspectives towards their own musicality. And by musicality, I mean their inborn “musical self” and its expressiveness to be actualized and shared in the outer world.
I think finding one’s own musical self is a vital part of becoming a qualified music therapist. Helping the students to identify and accept their own musical resource is an important step. I realize that they need sufficient opportunities and practices to come into contact with their own musicality. Many students have not had enough chance to explore their own musical resource or space. From there we, as their teachers, can raise other questions to help them: what is their musical capacity for self-expression, how do they utilize listening for themselves; how far can they explore recreating, etc.
Some students think that lack of improvisational skills is what makes them feel less of a good music therapist. However, prior to developing musical skills, one must come in contact with their own music. Clear sense of their own musicality can be developed into the feeling of empowerment and ownership. These feelings work as the grounding force to make musical challenges both in academic and clinical settings. They have to know what they have and where they are in order to grow from there. Although accepting one’s own musical self can be a long process, this new positive attitude toward their own music will enable them to enjoy the true musicing experience.
Secondly, I think it is very essential that students themselves know how to utilize music for their own needs. Often it is so unfortunate that despite the fact that music therapists are trained to use music for the others, they do not use music in the same way for their own needs. For example, in the sessions many students use music to elicit imageries which are healing and spiritually meaningful for clients, however, I wonder how many of them actually practice music-imagery for their own well-being.
Therefore, I believe teachers need to provide opportunities for students in which they can contemplate what music is significant for them, and what kind of musical experiences are working for them, etc. So that even if they drop out of the program they can at least leave with the knowledge and the insight on how to use music for their own well-being.
Unlike other professions, expressive arts related therapists really need to have insight for self-care or self-help using their own arts medium. Especially, when it comes to music and dance, these are used in the combined form of personal and professional expression. Music can be very personal and revealing, and often personal issues are manifested in its professional use since it belongs to the person who creates it. Therefore, students really need to have a stable relationship with music both on an intellectual and an emotional level. This knowledge and insight for using music for him/her will serve as an important basis which can be further applied to relate to clients and take on other challenges. With this the students can grow, as genuine and integrated therapists, to bring the best out of the clients.
Chong, Hyun Ju (2007). Music Therapist’s Therapeutic Relationship with Music. Voices Resources. Retrieved January 11, 2015, from http://testvoices.uib.no/community/?q=colchong240907