Brazil is traditionally a Catholic country. Among its 175.941.698 inhabitants, there are 124.980.132 Catholics and 26.184.941 Evangelists, the latter being distributed in many branches. However, this situation is presently changing fast because there is an increase of Evangelist branches that are provoking changes in the Catholic Church and its members.
Music is used in religion as a strong element and the Evangelic branches use it in chorus, orchestras and other activities, besides religious offices, with the goal of helping human beings. And, because of this, many students from these churches come to study Music Therapy.
Recently, a Music Therapy project called "Enchantment"1 was accepted in the Instituto Nacional do Cancer - Inca [National Institute of Cancer] in Rio de Janeiro, proposed by and under the supervision of Marly Chagas, a well-known Brazilian music therapist. The main goal of the project is to sing to patients who are in the institution waiting for surgeries, chemotherapy, or other kinds of treatment; and, to the staff from many areas, such as infirmaries, out patient units, intensive care units, chemotherapy units, drugstores, and others.
To attend to the necessity of the institution Chagas invited students from the Conservatorio Brasileiro de Musica - CBM [Brazilian Conservatory of Music], where the Music Therapy Course of Rio de Janeiro has been offered since 1972. Eight students attended this invitation and Chagas prepared them to start working, organized in pairs, after an agreement signed between these two institutions: INCA and CBM.
After the students' preparation, with guitar in hand, the keyboard and some small Brazilian percussion instruments under their arms, they went to the institution also carrying fear, insecurity, and other feelings that generally "inhabit" trainees in their initial activities as therapists [and also, many times, for experienced and expert music therapists in unknown situations!]
Religion and spirituality help patients to face the illness and many researchers have pointed out the benefits that faith gives to physical and mental health. According to Lima, referring to terminal patients, "they use faith and hope as a source to confront extremely difficult situations, as a fighting mechanism and move themselves in an invisible thread of hope, expecting a cure". (2002, p.13).
In the project, as mentioned before, the goal was to sing songs to patients, chosen by themselves or by the music therapists, if the patients are unable. But, why sing and what kind of songs? Singing, in this environment, is considered an expression of the soul.
The patients sing their own songs to express feelings, to strengthen him/herself or even for self-renewal. The music therapists-trainees improvise or sing what the patients ask but, generally, it is religious music - a kind of music, which is in many areas and contexts of the hospital. But, here, the songs are not only those sung in Catholic or Evangelical churches but, also, the popular ones, which have a religious or sacred theme or atmosphere, like belief, faith and spirituality.
This, Lima defines as "religious music", in the institution for cancer patients as, "the music which makes possible the expression of internal content, related to faith, hope, healing, victory and spirituality, independent of being from one religion or one specific Church". (2002, p. 21).
Singing means using the voice of the soul to enter into the deepest inner feelings. It is a process of singing for life, death, or everything, lying in a hospital bed. It is to sing songs, which are understood as "songs of hope"!
Chagas, Marly (2002). Projeto Encanto: A Música na Humanização Hospitalar. [Enchantement Project: Music in the Hospital Humanization]. Conservatório Brasileiro de Música. [Brazilian Conservatory of Music]. Rio de Janeiro.
Lima, Nivea Raquel de Carvalho (2002). A Música Religiosa no Tratamento Musicoterápico de Pacientes com Cancer. [Religious Music in Music Therapy with Patients with Cancer]. Conservatorio Brasileiro de Música [Brazilian Conservatory of Music]. Rio de Janeiro.
1) In Portuguese the name of this project is "Encanto". With this name, a play of words was made because in Portuguese em means in and canto is song or chant. So, through this name it would be possible to perceive the intention of the Project: to sing to people who are suffering in the institution. But together, "Encanto" means delight, enchantment.
Barcellos, Lia Rejane Mendes (2003) Songs of Hope. Voices Resources. Retrieved January 15, 2015, from http://testvoices.uib.no/community/?q=fortnightly-columns/2003-songs-hope
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