Home

Music Therapy in Germany

by voices | Sat, 03/01/2003 - 00:00

|Introduction| |Brief Historical Details| |Professional Status of Music Therapists and Where Music Therapists Work| |Music Therapy Training in Germany| |Research Foci| |Selected Links| |References|

Introduction

As music therapy in Germany is a wide field of activity I can only touch on some small details of its history, traditions, recent situation, backgrounds and perspectives in this article. However, perhaps the advantage of Voices being an e-journal could encourage my German colleagues to add further details in on-line responses to this article.

Brief Historical Details

The music therapy landscape in Germany is rich and colourful. Due to this fact, many histories of German music therapy seem to exist. In one reference it is stated that the contact of a German university-president with Paul Nordoff in 1966 was the birth of German music therapy. In another reference it is asserted that Franz Adalbert Fengler in the 1940s and 1950s published the first German articles as well as a book about music therapy and founded the first academic teaching in music therapy at University of Arts in Berlin. However, the history of music therapy in Germany starts with many disparate applications of music in medicine and education.

In the early 20th century Jacques Dalcroze was working in Dresden with his elementary use of music in early education of children including handicapped children. In the beginning and in the middle of the 20th century in medicine such medical doctors like Karl-Heinz Polter ("Music as a medium of healing" 1934) and Hildebrandt R. Teirich ("Music and Medicine" 1958) developed musical components of their treatments of neurological, psychiatric and psychosomatic diseases.

Strictly speaking, a systematic foundation of music therapy as a discrete subject and profession with training and professional organisations starts in Germany at the time when Germany was a divided country - partitioned into East- and West -Germany (since 1949 with two German states and certainly since 1961 with the wall). A lot of contributions were given before that time and could give a basis. But this music therapy was usually included in other professions and their activities, for example as part of the work of a medical doctor or part of the work for a teacher of special education and so on. A separate subject and profession of music therapy, which continues today, started in the 1960s and 70s in Germany. The first post designated for a music therapist was created in East-Germany in the end of the 50s in Leipzig and in West-Germany in the beginning of the 70s in Filderstadt (near Stuttgart).

Towards the end of the 1950s, Christoph Schwabe began to develop music therapy in the clinics of psychotherapy and psychiatry at University Leipzig. He was music teacher and began his career as a music therapist in the connection of psychology and musicology. He contacted Igor Frankl in Vienna and learned a lot about paradox intention, which he used in his method of music therapy, regulative music therapy. The most commonly used music materials of this method of receptive music therapy are the classic German and Austrian symphonic composers Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, with the addition of some Slavic composers.

Schwabe based his active group music therapy on the psychodrama approach of Iacov Levi Moreno, on elementary singing and playing Orff-instruments of German traditions and on the basics of communication of Paul Watzlawick. Together with his research team at University Leipzig and with other music therapy researchers a system of music therapy methods was developed with suggestions as to their application in different treatment contexts. Depending on the disorder of the patient and the clinical treatment context for instance the active group music therapy could be modified with a training focus (behaviouristic), with a interpersonal focus (deep psychology), with a more product- and self-confidence-oriented focus (humanistic) and so on. In 1967 Schwabe wrote about receptive music therapy based on the Leipzig music psychology research and with this change of approach came the terminology of passive music therapy in German publications about music therapy.

The first German music therapy congress took place in Leipzig in 1969 with East and West-German as well as Austrian participants. At this congress there were two German music psychologists, who were very important with their research of the psychic effects and dimensions of music experience as theoretical basis of music therapy, the East-German Hermann F. Boettcher and the West-German Hans-Peter Reinicke.

The special focus of the theoretical development of music therapy of Schwabe and colleagues (e.g. Jutta Brueckner, music therapy in child psychiatry; Ingrid Mederacke, music therapy in special education; Axel Reinhardt, active group music therapy; and Helmut Roehrborn, regulative music therapy) in the 70s and 80s was a special self-perception-concept and group music therapy, which was accepted by the state in East Germany. But in the end also these approaches were each quite individually orientated and this is one of the reasons music therapy could not develop state academic music therapy training at that time. It was instead established as a further education for nurses, medical doctors, psychologists, music teachers, musicians and musicologists.

In the beginning of the development of music therapy as a profession in West-Germany in the 70s anthroposophic music therapy became important. Maria Schueppel founded a private music therapy training course in this approach in 1963. Anthroposophic music therapy is based on the German anthroposophy of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), who developed a humanistic philosophy and practice for application in education, medicine and care for handicapped people, and is influenced by the arts. This approach is still alive in different anthroposophic schools, hospitals and homes all over Germany. Each of these institutions employs anthroposophic music therapists. This approach developed a range of specialist music therapy instruments (especially string- and wind-instruments). This music therapy approach also emphasized active music therapy in West-Germany.

Political changes have also supported the development of different kinds of active music therapy. Especially in the 1970s these changes happened after the students movement in 1968 in West-Germany. At that time, in connection with the students movement, free improvisation became well known because of its relevant social dimension. It was a social and political contrast to classical concerts; against the old society. The power of the audience in creating an aesthetic moment in contrast to being the listener in an upper class ceremony, which was full of hierarchies and rules, was a musical means of achieving individual freedom and involvement of every part of the society. Active music therapy with its understanding of improvisation was one way of getting that freedom.

Psychoanalysis also became popular at that time, especially because of its dimension of conflict with the generation of parents. A lot of sources of worldwide music therapy could now have their influences in the foundation of music therapy as an own academic subject in West-Germany. The creative music therapy approach of Nordoff and Robbins and the analytical music therapy of Mary Priestley became influential in the further development of music therapy in West-Germany.

Creative music therapy is still the kernel of the music therapy training of the only private university of Germany - the University of Witten-Herdecke. A lecture series in creative music therapy and analytical music therapy was presented in the 1970s, taught by their founders. Analytical music therapy was very important for some universities, for example with Johannes Th. Eschen in Hamburg. The psychoanalytical approach of Priestley became very popular and important for own German developments of different schools of music therapy (in German we often use schools instead of approaches or models). The psychoanalytical thinking influenced the approach created by Mechtild Jahn-Langenberg and the approach created by Susanne Metzner, the morphological music therapy approach created by Rosemarie Tuepker and Eckehardt Weymann and also of other pioneers of academic music therapy in Germany, like Walter Selle, and of music therapy practice, like Gertrud Katja Loss. Other aproaches like the Gestalt-Psychotherapy of Fritz Perls influenced the integrative music therapy of Isabelle Frohne-Hagemann.

It is not only the western sources that have been further developed in some German music therapy schools, one eastern source is still alive. Gerhard Tucek is the head of the German old-orient-music-therapy, which works on the basis of very old Arab sources and has contacts with music therapists in Turkey. The German research on this approach includes EEG-studies, etc.

Orff music therapy is also a highly specialised approach well known in Germany. The primary clients of this music therapy school are multiply handicapped children. Gertrude Orff founded this approach in the 70s. The basics of Orff music therapy were the Orff elementary education and a special German institution. These institutions are the social paediatric centres in Germany that are special institutions with medical doctors, psychologists and a lot of different therapists, which serve in a very good team work approach to handicapped children and their parents in crises and diseases.

Since the end of the 70s Karl Hoermann developed dance therapy. Karin Schumacher developed another special approach for autistic children in the end of the 80-ies, in which she included the theories of Daniel Stern, who became very important also for other West-German approaches in the beginning of the 90s.

This wide spectrum of different approaches of West-German music therapy and the East-German music therapy with its huge application of one principle came together without special visiting permissions in 1989, when the wall came down and the peaceful revolution of East-Germans (also of some East-German music therapists) was victorious. This event was important for the music therapy landscape in Germany. The different approaches in West-Germany had different foci and interests so they did not always work so well together at that time. A lot of different music therapy organisations existed. You can compare this situation with the American situation of two big music therapy organisations before 1999.

In the 90s the situation between East- and the different West-German music therapy organisations were problematically. But one important milestone in the 90s was the 8th World congress of music therapy in 1996 in Hamburg, chaired by Hans-Helmut Decker-Voigt. In the time of preparation of this very important event for German music therapy music therapists of all music therapy schools sit together on one chair, and a common meeting point of all German music therapy organisations was created: the Kassel conference, which still exists. Today eight German music therapy organisations are members of that conference and we hope, that the work of this conference will support to unite (like AMTA in the U.S.) the power of German music therapy for all the tasks that music therapy in Germany has to solve in the next years.

In the 90s a change to greater professionalism was seen. A new generation of music therapists is now in the workplace, trained not only by the first generation of German music therapy lecturers, also by the second and third generation. This can help, to come sometimes "from confessions to professionalism" (which is the title of a book of Klaus Grawe about a change of paradigms in psychotherapy). The very high value of psychotherapeutic music therapy in Germany has gradually been normalized by accepting also other schools of music therapy, working with handicapped people, in special education, in mental health or in neurological and other somatic clinics (e.g. the approach in neonatology of Monika Noecker-Ribeaupierre including or the work and research of David Aldridge and his German Nordoff-Robbins-colleagues in somatic clinics).

A further example can be seen in the work of Ralph Spintge who wrote in the 90s about music medicine in Germany, a developed discipline and application of music therapy in this country, and is acknowledged in one of the recent comprehensive books on music therapy. At the end of the 90s and in the new millennium overview-books are being published, in which most of German music therapy is united in one book with different representatives of their different schools. The recent landscape of German music therapy is very well documented in two books edited by Decker-Voigt (1996; 2001) and also books written about German and international music therapy (Bruhn, 2002; Smeijsters, 1994). Currently, a team of authors is working on a comprehensive book on receptive music therapy in Germany (edited by Frohne-Hagemann).

Professional Status of Music Therapists and Where Music Therapists Work

In Germany there is legislation governing all professions. There are laws governing the work of medical doctors, psychologists, social workers and so on however such laws do not exist for music therapists. One reason for this is due to the above-mentioned situation of so many music therapy organisations, which has made it difficult to clarify what music therapy involves. The training courses provide a qualification in music therapy but clinics, schools and other institutions employ music therapists by law as occupational therapists, social workers, remedial pedagogues or psychologists.

Therefore the heads of these health institutions have to be really interested in music therapy or want to have music therapy in order to appoint a music therapist. Music therapists in Germany have always worked in psychiatric and psychosomatic hospitals. Nearly 80 percent of psychiatric hospitals employ today music therapists. Also in special education and in therapeutic institutions for children with handicaps there exists a long tradition of music therapists. Nearly half of these jobs are part time jobs or fee jobs (that is, paid work for only some hours in an institution).

Emerging fields of practice for music therapists in Germany are social work (e.g. in prison and for unemployed people), dementia care, neurological rehabilitation, neonatology, hospice work, etc. Some of these fields will further develop in the next years, for example music therapy in geriatrics because of the group of old people is increasing in Germany and there is also great interest in neurological rehabilitation in music therapy. Often only one music therapist works in one institution or serves even some institutions. So the different working groups of the different music therapy organisations are very important meeting points for exchange and understanding. Sometimes a music therapist has to serve eight groups a day, sometimes there are four dyads to be seen in a day along with diagnostics, being an active member of the clinic conference and being the main therapist for special clients, etc. So long as there are no laws governing the work of music therapists in Germany these conditions continue.

All social and health services in Germany are for use by all Germans and are paid by taxes and (state) social insurances. Social insurance is available for all Germans and they depend on the income of a single person or family. Most of the schools, hospitals and other social institutions are paid by the state and the (state) social insurances. But there is a discussion in Germany this time to try to change this system.

There are few music therapy private practices. Most of them are situated in the south of Germany and in the big cities of Berlin, Hamburg and Munich.

Music Therapy Training in Germany

Training in music therapy is available in Germany at universities and at private institutes. The private courses are older then the academic tradition of music therapy trainings. At this time there are two undergraduate university courses and six postgraduate university courses. PhD studies can be done at University of music and theatre Hamburg (Dr. rer. mus.) or at University Witten-Herdecke (Dr. med.). PhD studies in cooperation with other universities through faculties of psychology, of musicology, etc. are also possible.

The duration of the undergraduate university courses are four years full time and the students attain the degree of Diplom-Musiktherapeut/in (FH). The postgraduate university courses are not intended to replace the undergraduate courses. They are studied by music and remedial pedagogues, by social workers, by psychologists, by medical doctors, by musicologists, etc. The degree of these courses is an Diplom-Musiktherapeut and since 2001 at university of applied sciences Frankfurt/Main the first Master of music therapy (by Almut Seidel). The duration of these courses is between two and three years. Some of them are full time courses, some of them part time. The private courses are the same duration, and most of their candidates have also a first degree in the above-mentioned professions.

In Germany there are some eleven private institutes, which offer different private courses to become a music therapist (without academic degree, but often acknowledged by one of the professional music therapy organisations). In the end most of music therapists in Germany are not only music therapists. Despite the two undergraduate university courses all other music therapists are also teachers, social workers or musicologists etc. So most of the German music therapists have often more then one professional identity and only less exist a pure career as music therapist (two undergraduate courses versus seventeen postgraduate and private courses).

Normally the university courses in Germany are free (paid by taxes). So it was a very important step in the end of the 90s when in Magdeburg started in 1998 a university course, which is completely free. Like all other university courses in Germany, like medicine, psychology, education, etc. also this music therapy course became normalized. An important part of nearly all courses in Germany is experiential training beside theory of music therapy, music, psychology and medicine.

Undergraduate university courses:

Postgraduate university courses:

Private courses:

(For music therapy within other university courses of social work, remedial pedagogy and theology see also: www.uni-dortmund.de/unisono/index.html www.haw-hamburg.de/winq/85/index.html; www.uni-koeln.de/hp-fak/musik/index.html; www.thh-friedensau.de/deutsch/angebote/musik_musiktherapie_text.htm;
and for courses in GIM in Germany: www.imitberlin.de)

In these web pages you can find a range of information about the history of music therapy. University courses in Germany have many foreign students from all continents and German students go also abroad to study. Some German courses have frequent exchanges with lecturers from Europe (especially supported by programs of European Union or foundations) and the U.S. German lecturers give this time support for building up music therapy training courses especially in East-Europe and Asia (for example, Decker-Voigt with Hungary and Taiwan and Wosch with Ukraine, including also IT-lectures and -seminars).

Research Foci

The main topic of German music therapy research is the qualitative music therapy research approach. Most of the publications and PhD studies in German music therapy research of the last twenty years are based on qualitative research method.

ProfessorJahn-Langenberg from University of Arts Berlin organizes national and international symposia for qualitative research. In the symposia of Jahn-Langenberg, the different methods of qualitative analysis are highlighted. This way with the background of morphologic psychology, of the theory of psychoanalysis within music therapy, within process-research and so on, indicates the recent German research priorities. The main question pursued is, what happens in the music therapy process.

David Aldridge from University of Witten-Herdecke holds a professorship relating to qualitative research. Musictherapyworld and Info-CD-Rom from the University of Witten-Herdecke aims to build up an archive of thousands of single-cases for much more meta-research of basics of music therapy.

There is also some research that has used quantitative and qualitative methods or parts of quantitative research. A small number of effect-studies have been undertaken, for example in some studies of the German centre of music therapy research in Heidelberg, in research projects of University of applied sciences Magdeburg and in research about Orff-music therapy. The approach seeks to find reducable items of music therapy and to check them within music therapy.

A very important meeting point for German researchers is the research conference at University of Ulm, chaired by the professor of medicine Horst Kaechele each February. He observes a difference between research standards in music therapy and in other social and health sciences. Especially the standards for effect-studies, which are necessary for the acknowledgement of music therapy in the health system, have been discussed every year and also the possibilities of effect-studies in music therapy. However, it seems to challenge the struggle between the use of qualitative and quantitative methods and there is to be seen more and more conversation between both at conferences and in research projects.

A list of all German research projects is beyond the scope of this text (even about music therapy training, about history of single German schools, etc.). However, a history of this research up from the 60s / 70s would be very interesting, for example, concerning the question, why was there a very strong connection between music psychology and music therapy in the beginning and why has this connection more or less ended or why are there only less publications of music therapy research in German scientific psychology, medicine, musicology and pedagogy journals; are these the results of the high specialization of academic subjects in Germany and is that the best way of a separate subject of music therapy?



Selected links

Research

Journals and Series

Journals:

Series:

  • Heidelberger Schriften zur Musiktherapie (Gustav Fischer, Stuttgart. edited by the foundation of rehabilitation Heidelberg. series are closed)
  • Praxis der Musiktherapie (Gustav Fischer, Stuttgart. edited by V. Bolay & V. Bernius. series are closed)
  • Crossener Schriften zur Musiktherapie (Akademie fuer angewandte Musiktherapie Crossen, Weida. edited by C. Schwabe) (www.musiktherapie-crossen.de)
  • Info-CD-Rom music therapy world (edited by D. Aldridge & J. Fachner) (www.musictherapyworld.de)
  • Kairos / Music Therapy World (Huber, Bern. edited by D. Aldridge / Private Universitaet Witten/Herdecke gGmbH, Witten/Herdecke. edited by D. Aldridge & M. Dembski) (www.musictherapyworld.de)

Links to German Music Therapy Organisations and Clinical Practice

Organisations:

Clinical Practice Links

References

Bruhn, H. (2002): Musiktherapie. Goettingen: Hogrefe.

Decker-Voigt, H.-H. (Ed.) (2001): Schulen der Musiktherapie. Muenchen: Ernst Reinhardt Verlag.

Decker-Voigt, H.-H. & Knill, P. & Weymann, E. (Ed.) (1996): Lexikon Musiktherapie. Goettingen: Hogrefe.

Smeijsters, H. (1994): Grundlagen der Musiktherapie. Goettingen: Hogrefe.

For more references, search in Lokales Bibliothekssystem Magdeburg - Hochschulebibliothek Standort Magdeburg (http://mdas10.urz.uni-magdeburg.de).

How to cite this page

Wosch, Thomas (2003). Music Therapy in Germany. Voices Resources. Retrieved January 08, 2015, from http://testvoices.uib.no/community/?q=country/monthgermany_march2003