I look forward to presenting at an upcoming meeting. Find more information here.
Books and articles
An Article Monthly is on its way. I will be reading “Bereaved Parents’ Experiences of Music Therapy with their Terminally Ill Child,” Journal of Music Therapy, Fall 2008. (I am fully aware this is not in APA format.)
I have just come across the book, The Power of Music: Pioneering Discoveries in the New Science of Song, by Elena Mannes. Has anyone read it?
Growing toolbox
The director of the therapeutic recreation department at the care center where I’m working has asked me for my “wish list” for the music therapy position. There is a limited number of musical instruments there to be used. I use some of my own equipment.
I submitted the beginning of my wish list, which includes a guitar and a djembe (like I said, a beginning). As I have never grown a “music toolbox” for a facility, I can’t be sure that I’m asking for the right things. The guitar is a given, yes, but I’m wondering if I’m overlooking staples. Granted, the facility does have some handheld percussion, but there are many needs.
Goals
The music studio through which I contract operates in sessions that last a certain number of weeks. Our current session will be ending at the beginning of February, only to be followed directly thereafter by the next session. At the end of this session, though, I will be losing two of my clients.
One of my colleagues has wisely said that music therapy, in practice, is so much more about small gains than the big, fantastic successes we sometimes read in the research and other articles we access. I have found that with each passing week, I have had to try and try again to find creative ways to engage one of the clients who will be leaving. Finally, finally, tonight I feel that I had a breakthrough with this particular client. I feel that I found a good approach to organizing our time together that lets me target the goals I have for his progress while also giving him autonomy in the session.
Of course. Of course this happens only two sessions away from his treatment termination! My hope is that he will leave his experience in music therapy feeling at least a small sense of hope and success. Then I will have achieved a goal of my own.
Reading and writing
I am getting some response to others interested in An Article Monthly. I am still figuring out what to read, however.
January is Music Therapy Advocacy Month, and what better way to advocate than to become more inspired (and therefore feel the need to share the excitement). I enjoy writing about my profession, and I also benefit from reading. At one time, I was collecting some ideas for my own research project. I have not abandoned this thought, but I have too much going on right now to sort out and dedicate enough time to doing it in earnest. But, reading others’ research is almost always good to do.
An Article Monthly Project
The Minneapolis Area Music Therapists group met again tonight. I am very happy that we are truly meeting regularly.
Tonight, I threw out the idea to the others who met that we could each read an article of interest, in the Music Therapy Perspectives, or in the Journal, or even elsewhere, and come together to report on it on a monthly basis.
We each are taking this week to find one article and let each other know what it is, so that each person reads a different piece.
I don’t read nearly enough. So, here we have opportunity to get back into that habit.
I’ve decided there is no reason this has to happen in person. Is there anyone out there who is interested in participating?
Do it. The more the merrier. Right?
Comment here and let me know if you’ll join us. Really, this is a pretty easy thing to do.
Another monthly meeting
Tomorrow night, Minneapolis area music therapists will meet up for our monthly meeting. I have some ideas for monthly topics.
I am hoping to gather as many music therapists in this area as I possibly can. Maybe this won’t happen tonight. Maybe I should exercise patience. Perhaps.
Adrian Knight
Adrian Knight. A composer I really like and have never heard before. Especially his piece, “Manchester.”
Beep Egg
Oh, man.
Surprising
I saw two new individual tenants this afternoon at the assisted living facility where I work on Wednesdays. Very rarely do I have any information about these tenants, other than their names, phone numbers, and apartment numbers. I try to prepare myself for whomever I see by bringing several books of music, all of a big variety of genre. (This is where I could easily utilize an iPad. I definitely see using an iPad as a practical tool, and a great goal to have for myself.)
The first new tenant I saw today was the father of five musicians and the husband to an accomplished dramatic soprano. He said that he was the least musical of his family, but he could sing well. We had a somewhat brief discussion about Mahler and Wagner.
The second new tenant I had was very familiar with music therapy, as her granddaughter is a local music therapist who works in hospice. This tenant’s niece was present for our session, and they spoke very knowledgeably about music therapy.
Certainly, I try to prepare for a number of things when I see tenants cold like this, but I was happily surprised to have such an eclectic afternoon. I am also very pleased that my second tenant was so aware of music therapy, and that her relative was there to share how much she felt our session was helpful.