Music Therapy in Community Groups

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

• Share your thoughts with the board members on the role of music therapy in community based settings.

[Laura Montesano]

I REALLY feel the my community here is ready for a program like sprouting melodies. I was just working with a speech client, 3 year-old diagnosed with autism (I naturally use music in my work with her), and her mom proceeded to tell me how she goes to a Music Together class, which is great, but….yeah, I just feel that she would get SO much more support in working with a music therapist in group music. There also seems to be many ‘segregated’ music classes (obviously not in this case with the child going to Music Together), but I think it would be SO great to have a program open to the entire community, not just children with special needs, or ‘typically developing’ children. Last night I gave a talk on music therapy, as a launch to some music therapy programs I’m going to be offering here at this clinic, but it’s a little tricky getting the ‘right’ kids in the group, we are advertising it as group music therapy- it is more clinical work, but I would love to have a group that is open to everyone…..I do see that happening down the road…I look forward to learning more.

Also, I am discovering local associations that support the Latino population, I would love to do a bilingual group- I would love to bring all of the families together in an accepting supportive music setting. The English-speaking families are always looking to teach their children Spanish- and vice versus. What better way than to do this naturally through music, all the while supporting development 🙂

[Cindy Humphreys]

Our community currently has one music program for young children and their care givers. I don’t know much about it, other than the woman who provides it has a background in performing. She holds it at the local community center. I know from conversations with parents and teachers that there is a need and a desire to have quality experiences for families. Our school district runs the Starting Strong program which is grant funded. We also have the Early On program for young children identified with special needs. Currently any child may enroll in one of the several Starting Strong playgroups. This is where I see Sprouting Melodies fitting in, giving parents another option.

I live in a different community than the one I work in,and am also considering providing Sprouting Melodies here as a more typical group with parents paying for the service. The need is great, and I think sprouting Melodies has so much to offer.

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

Congratulations on your music therapy presentation, Laura. This group has so many experienced music therapists and I know that they offer so many great ideas that you can draw on as you continue to advocate in your community. Cindy, I would love to hear more about the Early On and Starting Strong programs.

[Amy DiLabio]

Laura, I really like your idea of facilitating a bilingual group in your community. I hope things go well in that department.

I can’t imagine a community that wouldn’t benefit from music therapy based in that setting. It offers that community the opportunity to learn and understand what Music Therapy is all about as well as having the opportunity to participate in groups led by Music Therapists. It seems to me that the concept of Sprouting Melodies would offer a lot to children and not only parents/caregivers within a community, but grandparents too. I would like to provide a class that is inter-generational. Perhaps at an over 55 community or a senior center. This would give the residents the opportunity to have a special time with their grandchild.

In the past I ran an inter-generational program at a nursing home. The home had a daycare for the workers. I ran several groups with residents and kids from the day care. There were lots of challenges because of the limitations of the residents of the home as well as the children had difficulty bonding with the residents. It took quite awhile to form a cohesive group, but overall it was a positive experience.

[Angie Carter]

I am very intrigued by several of Amy’s ideas, including the intergenerational groups and grandparents as caregivers. What an opportunity for families, and it may also provide a facility for groups to take place.

I struggle with the idea that the community would benefit from a music therapy group and families being willing to pay for a music therapist to facilitate. They express the want, but don’t want to pay. Then when a new free music group started, they complained that it was no good!

The connections and bonding are a portion that I would really like to promote. I feel we are all forced to be too fast paced and we miss out on so much with our children. I know I did and that’s what I see with our families. They feel like they have to do it all, and end up not doing nothing with their children because they are so overwhelmed. I want families to have simple and enjoyable music they can share, making an impact on their child and for themselves. This is music therapy for them as we’ll. They are exhausted!

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

There are wonderful materials on intergenerational music therapy by Joan Shaw.

[Alyssa Kereki]

I am still working on researching the services that are already provided in my community and where the gaps need to be filled. I find it ironic tha Amy and Angie both touched on intergenerational programming because that is actually one of my goals for the near future. On a different note, one of the local hospitals is considering hiring a music therapist to work with teen mothers and their babies. Although I am not a mother, I personally feel that my Sprouting Melodies training would be perfect for that situation. Teen mothers have so much on their plates and are still growing themselves that I believe that would really benefit from taking the time to bond with their babies and learn important development tips.

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

Great idea, Alyssa. Has anyone on the list have experience with teen mothers? I did a program a number of years ago and found some challenges that were specific to the maturity of the mothers. There was quite a bit of parent education that needed to be done, and the music experiences seemed to give the girls a kind of ‘third focus’ (besides the baby, themselves and me) so that it was easier for me to provide quick thoughts to educate in a very informal, non-judgmental way. Those of you who are parents of older kids might remember how much easier it was to talk while driving in the car, so they kids didn’t have to make eye contact;-) The music seemed to provide some of that same non-threatening atmosphere.

[Wei Ming Loi]

Beth came to Singapore last year so she must be familiar with the situation here now too.
MT is still a very new profession in Singapore and we are largely confined to clinical MT in hospitals and special schools settings. Music Therapists here are fighting to create an awareness of what the profession is about and am trying to differentiate ourselves from musicians, sound therapy and other music programmes all the time.

That being said, there is also a move in the community towards looking for support for families with young children. Parents are also more informed and are looking at possible services for their child at a younger age. There is also a trend in Singapore of grandparents caring for the young ones while the parents are at work, thus leading to very little bonding time for the parents with their child. Thus, I can see the importance of spending quality time with the child through music in building up the trust of the child with their parents.

[Tamara Strom]

First of all, I apologize for my extremely delayed posts!!! This was a really hectic week, as I picked up several new music therapy groups this week, which I’m slightly nervous about…not so much because of the kids, (though they are very high need), but because of the school administrators who don’t understand the process of music therapy, and have unrealistic/not clinically appropriate expectations. It will be an adventure!!

I guess that sort of ties into the topic of community music therapy, in that I think there is a high need for the community/group participants to understand the process of music therapy and how it differs from education, etc.

I like Alyssa’s idea about programs for teen moms. I’m guessing that all new moms would likely benefit from these groups, both for bonding with their babies, and also finding community with other new mothers and fathers. It would be therapeutic for both the parents and the children!

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

It sometimes does feel as if we are always explaining music therapy to people. I find, though, that the more I talk about it the clearer I become in my own mind and hopefully in my explanations. One reason I created the developmental framework is to help families and early childhood educators and administrators get the concept of addressing development and developmental concerns through music making rather than having them focus on single skill acquisition. Our ability to address global growth is unique.

[Leigh Giglio]

In my community, I see a need for our military Moms. They struggle with young children and a Dad’s Schedule that is always changing with frequent TDY’s or deployments. They are basically functioning as a single Mom in a marriage because there is so much instability as to when Dad will be around to help. These women are stressed and, sometimes, overwhelmed with their current situation. A community based music therapy program would give them a break, allow them an opportunity to make friendships with others in their situation, as well as meet local moms that know the ins and outs of the city, and as an opportunity to be educated about the development appropriateness of their children (many of the enlisted families do not have the menas to send their kids to preschool).
I have not researched this yet, but I think offering services at the hospital through their birthing education classes would be benefitical. Being able to meet these Mom’s prior to birth to teach them the importance of music and relaxation and even music inutero and then segway the class to after the have their chidlren as a type of support group, especially to first time Mom’s. There is also two pregnancy help centers in town that would benefit from this type of program, as well. We also have a local Chidlren’s home that takes in court appointed children. These kids are desperatley needing some form of positive bonding with safe adults so that they can learn to trust again. The only roadblock I see is funding. No one has the money to fund such viable and needed programs.

[Elizabeth Schwartz]

Thank you for all the wonderful ideas, Leigh. I heard Barb Else from AMTA National Office speak about a project working with military families. I will try and find out more about it and how she arranged for funding.

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