When people ask me what my major is and I reply music therapy, I always get a look of confusion from the person. I laugh at this look because I know that that person is either trying to decide if I am making up a career or to put the two words "music" and "therapy" together to understand what my major means. Immediately after this puzzled look, I always get the question, "So, what exactly is music therapy?" My family even asks me that question from time to time. Since music alone is so hard to describe, it is sometimes hard to sufficiently explain music therapy. My usual answer has become, "Music therapy is using music as a tool in therapy for any population." I am usually unsatisfied with the answer I give but I am still only just learning what music therapy is myself.
After reading "Music Therapy: The Use of Music for Healing Music Centered Music Therapy Studies" by Andre Brandalise, another piece of the puzzle was put into place. I have a better understanding of what music therapy is and how it works. Brandalise answers the question of what role the music plays in music therapy. He actually personifies music by saying that the music is "searching for contact" with the therapist and the client. This opens up a whole new concept of music therapy for me. I know now to not be afraid of letting a client explore music in its entirety and to interact with it. I also understand how important music is for therapy. Many people assumes that music is the center of music therapy whether it is or not, but Brandalise shows how music should not be between the therapist and the music, but act as a major part of the session. Brandalise says, "Music is the primary therapist."
I can now give a better answer to the age-old question "what is music therapy?" I can explain that as a music therapist, I will be able to provide a musical environment for a client to become a part of to interact with the music in order to improve who they are. I know that the better understanding of music therapy that I have will be beneficial to my future clients and to the people around me who are curious about what I do.
The author of this article clearly notes that the term “health” means “a way of being” in the world or a way of existing to improve ourselves. He points out that music therapists find another way of healing that goes much deeper through the creative experience of being in music. He also poses a question that is so common among everyone about what the exact healing process is during music therapy. People often ask me the same questions regarding how music therapy works and what benefits there are from the engaging process between a client and the music therapist. Music therapy research has proven that there are many ways in which we, as music therapists, can search for the “innate musicality” in our clients. This search starts from a process of listening to music and moves towards performing it, improvising, or to describing our feelings through sounds. One of the significant parts of therapy is to get to know the client. I believe that the client coming into the first session is usually unaware of what music therapy is and does not know what to expect or how to behave. Once the client begins to learn their own “innate musicality” music serves another role, which allows the client to open up to the possibilities of being in the moment of music-making. There is no right or wrong way to play the instruments or to engage in the creation of music. The author of the article presents the idea of improvisational music therapy styles, created by Nordoff-Robbins, where the client and the therapist “live in the music” during the present moment of creation. We have discussed this style in my music therapy theories class, and this style especially appeals to me because of its unique approach toward the individual. Being engaged in the music shapes you while you immerse yourself in the imaginative energy of the improvisational moment. Wheeler suggests that while improvisation may appear unstructured, there is an underlying organization or plan. She also mentions, however, that improvisational experiences aare not appropriate for all clients, thus we as music therapists have to be sensitive and attentive to the individual needs of the client. (Wheeler, p.87)
The author also suggests that the therapeutic relationship is an essential aspect of any therapy, one in which the client and therapist go through a series of changes to attain a particular goal together. I believe that as the author pointed out, to “be with and be in the music” is one of the most significant ideas that every therapist should apply in their work. Through using expressive and improvisational sounds, we foster emotional healing and we can awaken personal creativity. During the sessions, there are multiple connections being made among the therapist, client, and the music. They all end up working together and this creates a strong therapeutic relationship. We experience insight, self awareness and self-understanding in the music, and this is a transformative event both for the therapist and the client. In her book, Wheeler also mentions these connections as they are formed through music. Through music, we can experience the world in a different way as we see ourselves in relation to everything that surrounds us. (Wheeler, p.148) She also mentions that “music may assist a client to reconnect to the world outside of him- or herself within the context of the relationship with the therapist.” (Wheeler, p.149) I believe that the ability to connect to one’s identity is an essential aspect of connecting to the therapist and to the music itself. Music-centered music therapy is mainly focused on creating those connections, and this in the end produces the desired result through music. The three agents that the author points out in his article (the therapist, the client and the music) work equally well with each other and communicate in a way that is both understood and at the same time processed. The concept of “dynamic qualities” was especially significant for me because the author suggested that all the tones “ask” us to be directed towards the client who aspires to create them. There is a sort of communication between the music itself and the client who creates that music. The tones speak to every one of us, through how we decide how to use them or even through what instruments we choose. The music that is formed by the client is a form of communication and self-expression. The specific sounds may be used to establish a trusting relationship with the therapist, can deepen feelings, or can help the client become more present during the session. The music therapist is only there to facilitate or begin the session in order to provide some guidance for the client, but the music is doing all the work. I agree with the author and believe that music has an essential role and that it guides the session, gives directions for what to do next, and opens up the deeper feelings of the client as it lets music be the words spoken between them. Music strengthens our sense of identity and therefor it contributes to health in general.
References
Wheeler, Barbara L. , Shultis, Carol L. & Polen, Donna W. (2005). Clinical Training Guide for the Student music Therapist. Gilsum: Barcelona Publishers.
Malchiodi, Cathy A. (2005). Expressive Therapies. New York: The Guilford Press.