Fact Sheet of Music Therapy in Japan

By Rika Ikuno

Brief History of Japanese Music Therapy Development after World War II

For the first several decades after World War II, music therapy was pioneered by a small number of specialists in related fields. From around 1955, music colleges and university-based schools of music started to include music psychology in their curriculum, and the concept of music therapy was often taught as an applied field of it. Teachers and students who found themselves particularly interested in music therapy started to organize regional study groups and to seek opportunities to practice music therapy on a voluntary basis.

From 1967-1977, several music therapy study organizations were established by different opinion leaders such as Kagaya, Yamamatsu, Sakurabayashi, and Matsui. Many of the current leaders of Japanese music therapy were nurtured under these organizations. Also, Juliet Alvin (1969) and Clive and Carol Robbins (1984) made visits to Japan, and had a great influence. In 1987, the Tokyo Association for Music Therapy was established by Murai and identified itself as one for "music therapy practitioners."

In the 1990s an increasing number of specialists who are either self-trained or who studied abroad now practice music therapy. Interest in the subject among the general public as well as the related professionals has grown enormously.

In 1995, in order to connect the widely dispersed small communities of music therapy throughout Japan, the Japanese Federation of Music Therapy (JFMT) was established and started to certify music therapists (this is not a state certification, and not applicable to health insurance).

In 2001, JFMT was reorganized as Japanese Music Therapy Association (JMTA). JMTA holds national conferences and educational lectures, publishes academic journals, gives/renews music therapist certification, as well as explores the possibilities of a more institutionalized certification systems. At of the end of 2004, JMTA had approx. 6200 members.

Education/Training System

JMTA has certified 943 music therapists by 2003 (in 2003, 174 were certified from 322 applicants). Currently there are two ways in which to be certified by JMTA.

1. To participate in the lectures held by/approved by JMTA and accumulate a certain amount of "points," to have practical experiences for a certain number of years, to apply through the regulated documents, and to be certified through the final interview. (Those who have finished music therapy courses in foreign countries are mostly approved, and certified after a certain number of years of practice in Japan and the final interview.)
2. To complete the music therapy courses of JMTA approved schools (19 as of 2003, 4 year-curriculum of undergraduate level), to have a paper examination to be certified as a "provisional music therapist," to practice under supervision for a certain number of years, and to be certified as a "music therapist" after the final interview.
Also there are cases in which the local government has an original training system and gives their own certification. In any case, it is not necessarily true that these certifications are indispensable to practice music therapy in Japan, and there are those who work under own employment relationships.

Typical Population/Diagnosis and the Places Music Therapists Work at

• Developmentally disabled children (mental retardation, autism, cerebral palsy, etc.): Welfare centers and training centers, independent groups, clients'/therapists' home, etc.
• Developmentally disabled adults (mental retardation, autism, cerebral palsy, etc): Welfare centers, vocational centers, residential institutions, etc.
• The elderly (Alzheimer disease, vascular dementia, preventive activities, etc.): Residential homes, day care centers, group homes, hospitals, etc.
• Psychiatric disorder patients (schizophrenia, depression, etc.): Hospitals, day care centers, etc.
• Terminal care patients: Hospices, terminal care wards, etc.

Approaches/Characteristics of Japanese Music Therapy

Presently, Japanese music therapists' placements spread to a wide spectrum between the poles: places where music therapy is acknowledged as a professional field and places that just expect "musical recreation." In a strict sense the latter cases cannot be defined as "therapy" because of the large numbers of participants and the irregularity of their participation, etc. However these placements often have the potential of developing into therapy placements in the long run, with more focus on the individual needs of the clients.

The major background theories for practice are developmental theory, special education, humanistic psychology, behaviorism, gerontology, group dynamics, rehabilitation, and so on. In addition, some are directly influenced by specific music therapy models such as Nordoff & Robbins. However not too many music therapists identify themselves as specialists of these models, which would imply knowing them comprehensively and using them intensively. Also, there are cases in which the therapist develops his/her own practicing theory based on experiences.

Regarding research; both scientific studies based on EBM (Evidence Based Medicine) and narrative case studies are used.