Music Therapy: An art beyond words
Leslie Bunt, Brynjulf Stige
Language: English
Pages: 266
ISBN: 0415450691
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Music therapy is recognised as being applicable to a wide range of healthcare and social contexts. Since the first edition of Music Therapy: An art beyond words, it has extended into areas of general medicine, mainstream education and community practice. This new edition revises the historical and theoretical perspectives and recognises the growing evidence and research base in contemporary music therapy.
Leslie Bunt and Brynjulf Stige document the historical evolution of music therapy and place the practice within seven current perspectives: medical, behavioural, psychoanalytical, humanistic, transpersonal, culture-centred and music-centred. No single perspective, individual or group approach is privileged, although the focus on the use of sounds and music within therapeutic relationships remains central. Four chapters relate to areas of contemporary practice across different stages of the lifespan: child health, adolescent health, adult health and older adult health. All include case narratives and detailed examples underpinned by selected theoretical and research perspectives. The final two chapters of the book reflect on the evolution of the profession as a community resource and the emergence of music therapy as an academic discipline in its own right.
A concise introduction to the current practice of music therapy around the world, Music Therapy: An art beyond words is an invaluable resource for professionals in music therapy and music education, those working in the psychological therapies, social work and other caring professions, and students at all levels.
music therapy As several of the definitions above underline, music therapy is very often understood as a relational practice in which activities are collaborative processes linked to a situation, and not separate interventions performed by the therapist. What happens in these collaborative processes? In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, improvisation established itself quite early as a major activity in music therapy. Here, music helps to release feelings or to articulate in a musical
individuals and groups; descriptions of work settings and training programmes; indicators of the growth of the profession; and (d) experimental – results of structured research, presentation of research plans. 96 Ibid.: 7. 97 Edwards (2005a: 20). 98 Ibid.: 21. 99 www.voices.no; http://approaches.primarymusic.gr/. 100 Kenny (1988). 101 McGlashan (1976: 102–3). 102 Holmes (2012: 486–7). 2 Music therapy examples and perspectives Introduction How is music therapy practised? What actually
second session. The setting is a small room. The therapist is at the piano with a drum and cymbal standing to the side. This arrangement is the same as for the first session, when John played for the most part on these two instruments. John comes in, moves quickly to the drum and cymbal, takes up the drumsticks that are offered him and starts to play. The contact with the instruments is immediate. He plays in short, sharp, loud bursts of sound. The therapist explores a variety of musical ideas
the law of gravity implies an effort in going up and relaxation in coming down. Singers and string, wind and brass players are only too aware of the physical relationships between levels of tension, relaxation and pitch. A simple practical exercise can demonstrate this link of pitch with our bodies: Try to be as relaxed as possible, sitting comfortably in a chair with your feet firmly on the floor. Make sure you are in a vertical position with your spine nice and straight. Now, if this feels OK,
therapy for children with communication difficulties within the theoretical frameworks both of parent–infant interaction and of conversation analysis.63 In addition to analysing how turns were negotiated in antiphonal musical play, Holck noted similar features such as pausing and ‘turn-yielding’ when the child and therapist engaged in simultaneous or synchronous play. Thinking of the case examples, such moments of simultaneous engagement and more antiphonal interchange were beginning to take