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Music Therapy Student and Intern Support – September Project
Aug 30th
Submissions for this project are due September 24th. I look forward to seeing all of your submissions!
Here is a transcription of the speaking points about September’s project:
Music Therapy students and interns are eligible to participate in this program and compete for an award of $100 US. Most importantly, by participating, you are sharing knowledge and ideas with the music therapy community at large, as well as helping to advocate for the field. This is the primary purpose of this program, and we are lucky enough to be able to provide a little financial support along the way, thanks to our awesome sponsors.
The objectives of this project are two-fold. First, because it is the beginning of the academic year, your task is to write an original “hello” song. It may be targeted at any population. Think about other elements you include to target specific therapeutic areas, such as cognitive tasks (counting, colors, days of the week, etc.) or social interactions (say hello to your neighbor, etc.)
The second task is to record this original song in the form of a Youtube video. Technology is playing an ever-increasing role in our field, and keeping up with it is a professional responsibility! Let’s see what you can create! Remember to respect confidentiality, and refrain from using patients/clients in your videos.
Submissions are due Friday, September 24. A link to your uploaded video should be emailed to musictherapysrc at gmail.com. Submissions will be judged by a panel of four professional music therapists. This month’s award is sponsored by the Iowa Chapter of Music Therapy, so a HUGE thank you goes out to them!
Thank you, and good luck on your songs! If you have questions, please ask them in the comment section of this post, so everyone can see the answers.
Announcements: New AMTAS Website, Student and Intern Support
Aug 11th
The American Music Therapy Association Students has a new website with a fresh look. If you are a student or professional, be sure to check out the new site and all the wonderful content up there! If you have comments or suggestions, please contact AMTAS advisor and website creator, Dr. Petra Kern, whose email address can be found on the site.
Also, with school starting up again soon, we will get the Student and Intern Support program up and running once more. There will be 5 more music therapy student and intern awards before January of 2011 . Remember, these awards are based on sharing quality information with fellow music therapists and students – how cool is that?! Look for an announcement next week for the next project’s criteria. Until then, take care!
-Matt
Guest Work: Research and ASD Techniques
Jun 29th
This is an article by my colleague and fellow music therapist, Denise Coovert. She works with many populations, but specializes in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. This is a review of a recent research article out of the Journal of Music Therapy. She reminds us of the importance of staying up to date on research-based techniques and applying them in our practice. Thanks for the summary!
“Effect of ‘Developmental Speech and Language Training Through Music’ on Speech Production in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders” by Hayoung A. Lim, PhD, MT-BC, NMT: A Summary and Review
Review by: Denise Coovert, MT-BC
Getting the Journal of Music Therapy each season reminds me of the strong, motivated network of music therapists in the world breaking new ground in music therapy research. Working in a small community in the Midwest, I sometimes feel isolated from the abundance of quality experiments, techniques and tools available to me as a music therapist. The more I practice, the more I realize how vital it is to read, understand and implement the research music therapists present in the Journal of Music Therapy and other publications. This article caught my attention for two reasons. I have the privilege of working with children with ASD and desire to know about new, research-supported techniques used with this population. It is relevant because I am currently developing interventions to address speech production, vocabulary expansion and language comprehension with my clients.
The study experimented with music and language using a Neurologic Music Therapy technique known as developmental speech and language training through music (DSLM). This technique, among many others, was developed in part by Dr. Michael Thaut, and provides a framework of music therapy known as Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT). This theory uses knowledge of music, the brain and how they interact to encourage desired behavior through music. The use of technique is explained in the article and opens with some very helpful background on ASD and the use of language with this population.
50 participants, ages 3-5, who had been previously diagnosed with ASD were included in the study. A scale was used to determine the children’s functioning level for use in data analysis after the study was complete. This data did not influence which group the participant was placed in or how they were tested in the study. 36 age appropriate, target vocabulary words were selected for the participants to learn. The testing materials included pre and posttests with fill-in-the-blank phrases with the target word at the end of each phrase. Six sets of phrases or songs were composed to include six different target words, and each of these sets was video recorded for use in the study. Each target word was also paired with a PECS symbol to aid in comprehension for the participants. The participants were randomly divided into three groups: control, speech and music. The control group only took the pre and posttests and did not watch any videos. The speech group watched a recording of a person speaking the phrases with the target words (with PECS) and each child watched the video two times consecutively and watched the video two times per day for three days (24 viewings total). The music group watched a video of the same phrases, this time sung with guitar accompaniment, and again watched the video two times per day for three days (24 viewings total).
The pre and posttests consisted of an investigator stating each phrase while leaving out the target word. Each child was instructed to state the target word left out of the phrase. Investigators were looking at the following aspects of speech: semantics (meaning), phonology (pronunciation), pragmatics (language and context), prosody (tone), vocal stress (syllable stress), and vowel sounds. All together, each participant could earn between 0-6 points for each word for a total of 216 points. The article describes in detail the protocol for determining each participant’s effectiveness of stating the word and therefore earning more points.
Results showed that both music training and speech training significantly increased the participant’s scores when compared with the control group. There was no significant difference between the music and speech group on the participants. The high functioning level participants more greatly improved their score when compared with participants with a lower functioning level, though the analysis showed the lower function participants produced positive score changes in the music training and not the speech training. The higher functioning group showed positive score changes in both variables.
Music and speech training are both effective in improving vocabulary in children with ASD. It should be noted that lower functioning children were more affected by the music training. Also, children who participated in the music training produced speech sounds, rather than musical imitation, during the posttest showing the development of a functional behavior rather than a memorization of song. The study also monitors the participant’s with echolalia and how is effective their results. The data shows that participants with echolalia and their level of functioning are positively related and therefore affected their posttest outcome.
This article goes on to address and discuss the possibilities and explanations for the outcomes of the study. The study is an excellent resource to music therapists looking for documentation to present to school districts to explain music therapy’s effectiveness and reliability. More research is needed to test the video music sessions versus live music sessions on the speech production variable and to answer how this technique can be applied in other areas of music therapy. Many clients with goals of increasing vocabulary and speech production can benefit from this technique and I am looking forward to using this strategy with my clients.
Hospice Reflections
Jun 8th
After a little more than five months of working in this field, I have the following reflections:
1.) Working in hospice care is an honor.
For our clients, we are some of the last people they meet in their lifetime. The entire hospice team (docs, nurses, social workers, aids, etc.) has a tremendous impact on the quality of a person’s final months, days, and hours. Receiving the trust of patients and their families during this intimate and reflective time is an incredible honor.
2.) Music is especially powerful in the hospice setting.
Music accompanies many of the memorable events in our lives. Parties, weddings, funerals…memories of which may be triggered by music. And then there are the more subtle memories, such as singing to calm crying infants and special songs shared between spouses. In short, music can often evoke emotions that cannot be accessed by merely discussing events. For hospice clients and their families, music therapy can provide comfort in a very stressful time.
3.) Anyone can make a Gold Record.
Grieving caregivers and family members often have the desire to hear their loved one’s voice after he or she has departed. The available technology makes this a very real possibility. With a laptop and a relatively inexpensive microphone, a music therapist can make recordings that will mean the world to family members, especially after the patient dies. I have made a few of these recordings, and the gratitude expressed by those close to the patient has been amazing. The recording doesn’t necessarily have to be music – consider having a client talk to family members, tell stories, or read favorite scriptural passages. This can be a very meaningful experience for the client as well.
4.) Don’t count on next time.
If there is something you would like to do with a client, don’t wait. Because of the nature of this field, conditions can change rapidly. There have been a couple times when I have missed opportunities to do really cool interventions because of sudden changes in clients’ conditions. Of course, there will be times when things just don’t work out. Just do not take future sessions for granted.
5.) Find the “spark”.
I work with clients in a variety of states. Some are very alert and others are barely responsive. For those that are minimally responsive, it can be difficult to see a point to the therapy. However, I’ve been surprised by a number of clients whom I originally suspected would not benefit from services. By trying different approaches and interventions, particularly with clients with advanced Alzheimer’s disease, I’ve stumbled upon a “spark”, or some sort of response that serves as a reminder that there is still a person in there. Finding this “spark”, as well as a way to access it again, can make for an extremely meaningful experience for family and caregivers, as well as for nursing home staff and even other members of the hospice team. With low functioning clients, it has become my goal to find this spark and to share it with others who would benefit from seeing it.
As I continue in hospice care, I am sure I will have more to write about. I would love to hear your comments or questions!
-Matt
Assistantship for MT Students and Interns
May 25th
The fine folks at the Music Therapy Round Table have a really neat opportunity for students and interns. They have created a paid assistantship for their website and podcast. See details here!
The duties of the MT Round Table Assistant are:
1. Listen to each podcast episode
2. Accurately type transcription including adding hyperlinks where necessary
3. Complete and submit transcript within 3 days of receipt
Applicants MUST:
1. Be a music therapy intern or student (includes bachelors, masters and PhD students)
2. Have reliable computer with internet connection and ability to listen to audio files
3. Be able to communicate through email and Facebook
4. Be familiar with Google Docs
Big props to Michelle, Kimberly, and Rachel for creating this opportunity for students/interns!
Lessons Learned By a New Professional
May 24th
So I have been a professional music therapist for almost 5 full months now, and I wanted to do a post about my experiences so far. Here are some of the things I have learned. If you are a new professional, please comment about your own experiences!
1.) Speak Up
Or, as John Mayer sang, “Say What You Need to Say”. As students and interns, we are mostly in learning mode, trying to soak up everything from our teachers and supervisors. While it is always important to be listening and learning, it’s also important to speak up and make ideas and professional opinions known. Many music therapists work in interdisciplinary teams, myself included. Other professionals may not know about techniques and approaches that we as music therapists are trained in, so we have to educate our team members. Gotta speak up!
2.) Make the Best of Your Spare Time
When away from work, it’s important to keep improving your skill set. Learning new things increases your value as an employee, and also adds to your own fulfillment. Young professionals seem to have an advantage when it comes to technology. Learn how to use recording software, how learn basic web design. Maybe you are an expert at social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) How can you integrate your non-musical skills into your practice as a therapist?
3.) Schedule Some Relaxation
Yes, I just wrote that we need to be continually improving our skills. However, it’s also important to get away from work and just chill out a bit. Take some time do something you love. Watch TV shows on Hulu, play some video games, or go for a walk. If you schedule some “Me Time”, you will be motivated when you are actually working.
So that is it for now. To other music therapists just starting out: what are YOU learning?
Advocacy Essay – First Winner!
May 10th
Congratulations to Andrew Littlefield of The Florida State University, who submitted the only essay for the first Student and Intern Support Project. I realize the timing may have been bad for many students, with finals and other end of the year stressors. Andrew’s article is very good, and he will be receiving a $100 award from the American Music Therapy Association of Students. I encourage more to apply to future contests! Congrats, Andrew!
An Essay on Advocacy
By Andrew Littlefield
Being a relatively small (and frequently misunderstood) profession, music therapists often find themselves performing an additional task outside of providing therapeutic services: advocating for the field. While those in the field or who have received music therapy services themselves are very familiar with its benefits, there are many who are not aware of what music therapy entails. By advocating for our field, we can ensure the expansion of music therapy, which will greatly benefit both therapists and potential clients.
One of the most important benefits of advocacy is the expansion of the music therapy client population. This includes broadening the field to new client populations and expanding established ones. Anyone who has spent anytime in music therapy knows the most popular question you get is “So…what exactly is music therapy?” Everyone knows what doctors, psychologists, and physical therapists do because they have such a large client population and a large percentage of the population have had experience with professionals in this field. By advocating for our field, we can make music therapy a household name, so to speak.
This benefits both the therapists and the potential clients. The benefits for clients are obvious. If more parents of children with special needs know about the benefits of music therapy they will seek it out, and we can do great things for these clients. This results in a larger (and more lucrative) market for the therapists. More contracts results in higher salaries and more new jobs for recent graduates (something I personally hope to see in the very near future!)
Another reason advocacy is a necessity is the protection of the field and the title “music therapist”. With events like the passage of the Health Care Reform Bill, the atmosphere in which many therapists are working is swiftly changing. This type of the reform has many effects on the field of music therapy. Public hospitals may find themselves with expanded budgets as a result of more patients with insurance. This could lead to the hiring of more music therapists in the medical setting, or expanding the budgets of existing programs. The reform could also lead to more attention and regulation given to professionals working in the health care industry, music therapists included.
It is important for those of us in the field to advocate with our local, state, and federal government to ensure that they know what it is that a music therapist does and the results they can provide. We need to make sure the title of “music therapist” is protected as well. Our elected officials who write up the reform bills must be able to distinguish between a music therapist and the caring individuals who volunteer their time to play the piano in the lobby of the hospital, or come by once a week to do sing-a-longs at an assisted living facility. This will ensure the credibility that organizations like AMTA and the CBMT have worked so hard to establish.
One of the most effective and far reaching ways to advocate for our field is through the multitude of outlets available on the internet. The advent of Web 2.0 has brought about many exciting venues for this. Websites such as Twitter and Facebook provide many excellent opportunities to interact and connect with a massive amount of users. As these are social websites, they automatically offer a venue where people can learn about music therapy in a setting they are comfortable and familiar with. I believe this makes people more willing to read and learn about all that music therapy can do. This also provides an excellent opportunity for music therapists all across the country to stay in contact and share ideas with each other. Blogs are another excellent venue for therapists to share their work. They allow for more creative control, as well as more content, in typically a more professional setting than social media sites.
Of course, this easy accessibility is not without its problems. As anyone can make these sites, there’s no way to ensure that only qualified professionals are claiming to be music therapists. If the AMTA started a program to certify certain blogs and websites, it would help solve this problem while also encouraging the creation of such sites and promoting existing sites.
Advocacy is essential to ensuring the growth and protection of music therapy, and it must start on a grassroots level. Individual therapists and students must take it upon themselves to educate those around them about music therapy through all the resources available to them. Technology is a powerful asset that we must utilize. By doing this we can ensure a prosperous environment for both therapists and clients alike for years to come.
Microphone Review and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”
Apr 25th
I’m pretty impressed with Blue Yeti microphone. It’s a USB mic, so it plugs directly into my computer. I’ll use it for recording videos and songs, but I also foresee therapeutic applications for it. I can already think of some clients I would like to record, especially for legacy creation purposes for families receiving hospice services. Also, check out Audacity. This free recording software is pretty easy to use and great for multi-track recording.
Guest Work – Iosif Kartapanis
Apr 23rd
This is a post from Iosif Kartapanis, a music therapist who did his training in the USA but recently established his own private practice in Cyprus. I asked him to write a post because international perspectives are valuable in understanding the global impact and diversity of our profession. He will be writing more, and I encourage you to comment and ask questions. He will be a great resource for anyone thinking of working outside the United States. Thanks, Iosif!
___________________________________________________________________________________________
I met Matt at the last AMTA National conference. He was, at that time, in the process of setting up his 
website, something that I found really exciting. I now have the privilege of writing a series of entries on the process of becoming a professional music therapists in Cyprus, an Island in the Mediterranean.
My name is Iosif Kartapanis and I finished my BA in music therapy at The University of Georgia. After the 4 years of studying and adjusting to the south, I move to Salt Lake City for my internship at Primary Children’s Medical Center with Mrs. Lillieth Grand, adjusting all over again to a different culture. When I finished the internship at the end of 2009, I decided to move back to Cyprus. It was then that all the adventure began.
Cyprus is a very small island, and if you think that the south is conservative, Cyprus will make you rethink of that. But before I start going more into Cypriot mentality, I would like to give a small background of music therapy in Cyprus.
There are Currently, around to 30 music therapy professionals and students. This number was counted in one of the meetings that music therapists held on the island in order to form an association. Music Therapists are currently employed by the government in special schools. They are also employed by organizations such as the Autistic Association of Cyprus and psychiatric services. A lot of the music therapists though have private practices.
In February of 2010, I set up my own private practice. The Cyprus Institute of Music Therapy is not only providing music therapy services, but also music lessons, and it contracts with the Autistic Association of Cyprus. It is really difficult to get Cypriots to try new things (in which music therapy is categorized). Music therapy is relatively new to the island and most people when they hear about it expect that is only used for stress. In order to further improve people’s understanding of music therapy, I have begun giving presentations on what is music therapy and its applications.
There is Much more to say but I would leave it for the next post. If you want to know specific things I think there is a way to comment here, so please feel free to ask.
Student and Intern Support Project Announcement!
Apr 5th
So here it is – the first project for the MTS Student and Intern Support Program! I’m very excited to see where this goes. If you can’t watch the video, check out the transcription below.
Transcript:
Hello! Matt here from Music Therapy Source, and I am super-excited to be making this video! This is the part where I announce the first project for the Music Therapy Source Student and Intern Support Program. This month is being sponsored by The American Music Therapy Association of Students, so I first want to extend a huge thank you to them. Here’s how it will work: in a few moments, I will announce the criteria for the first project.
If you are a student or intern in the field of music therapy, you may submit projects meeting the specified criteria. We will collect the submissions throughout the rest of April. In May, we will publish the submissions to the website so that the community can vote on them. The one with the most votes will receive a $100 prize, courtesy of AMTAS.
With all that said, the first project is this: write a 500-1000 word article about Music Therapy and Advocacy, and why it is necessary for the growth of our field. Give us some ideas of how we can educate others about the benefits of music therapy.
Please email your article to musictherapysrc@gmail.com.
If you have any questions, please ask in a comment on this post and I will reply. Thanks a lot, and I can’t wait to see your articles!
