Voices ResourcesA website for the worldwide community around the journal Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy

There was something in Diego Schapira's Fortnightly column of Feb 11-24 that seemed to stay with me after I read it, though it took several days of reflecting and mulling over his column before I could really articulate what I was feeling. I think that I was resonating with the concept of the "unknown" that he writes about. While he doesn't call it that, it is clear that he is saying that we don't know what emotional response a particular sound might invoke in our clients. So much of our responses and our clients' responses are wrapped up in our cultural and personal musical history. To be good therapists, we must be aware of these histories and attentive to them as they unfold in the present. We must be willing to follow rather than know.

This has led me into further reflection on living in and with the unknown. I seem to cycle between times when I think I understand or know an aspect of music therapy-whether it is qualitative research, supervision, or teaching-only to discover at a later time that the foundation I so carefully build has shifted. Diego calls on us to remain fluid and attentive. Yet I want something concrete and solid to stand on!

I have my first year graduate students write a reflection paper discussing why they want to be music therapists and how their journeys have brought them to this endeavor. One of my student's wrote "I am trying hard to accept the notion that I can be a good-enough therapist. This is difficult, as I tend to be somewhat a perfectionist. I do not deny that as I learn more about music therapy, I find that there is so much that I still do not know. This worries and irks me." This student has voiced my own awareness that while I am always learning more, there is always more to learn. At times I resist this, wanting clear and permanent answers to my questions.

How can I learn to embrace this unknown rather than avoid it? How can I model for my students a willingness to be, as Stige says, "not-knowing?" (Stige, 2001, p.161)

I have just returned from the New England regional music therapy conferences here in America. At this conference I watched each presenter, myself included, put ourselves in the position of facing the unknown. Every time we stand in front of a group we don't know what the outcome will be. Will we be able to be clear in communicating our thoughts and ideas? Will others understand us? Will our listeners appreciate our viewpoint? Will we be able to stay fluid and attentive to our material and our audience?

At this conference we have a special time were we offer the students from the three local colleges an opportunity to present. Each student at this conference took a step into not-knowing by standing before fellow students and professionals and sharing their topic, whether it was their clinical work, their thesis projects or their own personal growth experiences. Seeing them take this risk was inspiring. As I watched them step into this unknown experience I realize that we model for each other an ongoing commitment to remaining fluid and attentive and embracing "not-knowing." Their willingness to risk being fully present with the audience and face the unknown encourages me to continue to do the same.

Reference:

Stige, Brynjulf (2001). "The Fostering of Not-Knowing Barefoot Supervisors." In Forinash, Michele (Ed.). Music Therapy Supervision. Gilsum, NH: Barcelona Publishers.

How to cite this page

Forinash, Michelle (2002) The Unknown. Voices Resources. Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://testvoices.uib.no/community/?q=fortnightly-columns/2002-unknown