Music Therapy
Music therapy is the use of specific music with specific frequencies to promote relaxation and metaphysical and psychological healing. The goals of music therapy are to stimulate the interest of the clients in music as a meaningful cultural activity and to direct the clients' energies into making music for enjoyment, satisfaction and growth toward health. Studies have found music therapy to be successful in treating autism, mentally or emotionally disturbed children and adults, elderly and physically challenged people, and patients with schizophrenia, nervous disorders and stress. Music therapy encourages positive thinking, social interaction and promotes positive mood shift. Music therapy allows persons with mental health needs to:
It has also found to promote more metaphysical balance in people who do not suffer from any of the above disorders by reducing stress, facilitating relaxation and enhancing ability to focus. In summary, music therapy is a flexible and creative way of using the appeal of music to help people of all ages and all abilities. For additional information, please visit the American Music Therapy Association.
Some of the methods used in Music Therapy include:
For additional information, please visit The Use of Music in Therapy and American Music Therapy Association.
The idea of using music as a healing mechanism dates back to the beginnings of history and some of the earliest documentation of its use as a therapy can be found in the writings of ancient Greek philosophers. For example, in the 6th century BC, Pythagoras believed that music and certain types of food could cleanse the body and soul. Furthermore, music was used in the healing practices of primitive people throughout the world and by the European Christian Church in conjunction with medicine, prayer and chanting over the sick as a means of therapy. In the United States, music therapy was first implemented during World War I to help disabled soldiers in the Veterans Administration. Despite this, Music therapy in its modern form has existed in the United States since around 1944 when the first degree program in the world was founded at Michigan State University and the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA), a merger between the National Association for Music Therapy (NAMT, founded in 1950) and the American Association for Music Therapy (AAMT, founded in 1971), was founded in 1998. In 1985, an international organization, the World Federation of Music Therapy, Inc. (WFMT), was formed to promote music therapy worldwide. For additional information, please visit the History of Music Therapy.
A qualified music therapist assists and encourages the client towards specific, non-musical goals, which the clinician and client had previously agreed upon in therapy. In other words, a music therapist uses his or her training as a clinician, musician and researcher to effect changes in the cognitive, physical and psychosocial areas of an individual. It should be noted that music therapists work in a variety of settings including educational, medical and psychiatric facilities. A music therapist creates goals and objectives intended to answer the needs of clients through the use of carefully constructed treatment plans. In order to maximize therapeutic benefits, Music therapists design sessions and select music specifically suited to an individual client's treatment plan. During a therapeutic session, music therapists play and use their own instrument of choice and study (i.e., flute, guitar, piano, violin, voice, etc.). After initially assessing the client and briefly discussing musical preference, intervention begins. For additional information, please visit Australian Music Therapy Association and American Music Therapy Association.
People who can benefit from music therapy include the following: the mentally ill, the physically handicapped, those who have been abused, the elderly including those suffering from Alzheimer's and dementia, the terminally ill, the mentally retarded and the developmentally delayed, the traumatically brain injured, those with learning disabilities, and individuals who suffer from anxiety disorders. Individuals who do not suffer from a clinical psychiatric disorder can also benefit from music therapy. For example, music therapy has been used in general hospitals to alleviate pain in conjunction with anesthesia or pain medication, to elevate patients' mood and counteract depression, and to promote movement for physical rehabilitation. Music therapeutic techniques are useful to individuals in everyday life. For additional information, please visit Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre.
Individuals with proper credentials and training are the only ones qualified to provide music therapeutic services. A music therapist's education and training is extensive. For example, a music therapist has to have strong musical skills and must also be trained in how music is used in therapy. To practice music therapy, you need to have the following:
Music therapy has found to promote more metaphysical balance in people who do not suffer from any of the above disorders by reducing stress, facilitating relaxation and enhancing ability to focus. Music therapy can benefit healthy individuals in the following ways:
The future of music therapy is quite promising because music therapy research in physical rehabilitation, Alzheimer's disease and psycho-neuroimmunology is documenting the effectiveness of music therapy in terms that are important in the context of a biological medical model. In other words, there is more and more documented research indicating that music therapy works and that benefits from it are long lasting. With proof that this therapy works there is no confusion in whether it will be around in future hospitals and its use will increase as more people learn about its benefits. For additional information, please visit Music Therapy Research Database and Music Therapy E-Magazine.
There is a plethora of research that supports the use of music therapy. Among the scientific journals that publish research studies about music therapy are: Music Therapy, Journal of Music Therapy, the Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, Arts in Psychotherapy, and Music Therapy Perspectives. Research has demonstrated everything from the relationship between music and emotion to musical hot spots in the brain, the music of communication between mother and baby, and biochemical markers of music-making effects. For additional information, please visit Music Therapy Research Database, Music Therapy E-Magazine, and Music Therapy Research with Autistic Children.
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