It seems music is everywhere. Anytime I am on the EL, I feel at least half of the passengers I see around me have earbuds in—perhaps listening to music while they are multi-tasking? Music is now also very accessible—from i-Tunes to Pandora, Spotify, and YouTube, anyone can access music with a few clicks of a mouse, keystrokes, or finger taps/swipes.
One of the comments I often receive when I tell people I am a music therapist is, “Oh yeah, I use music therapy all the time at home to relax.” W
hile many people listen to music for entertainment, leisure, exercising, or social purposes, many people are also using music for their emotional needs. The use of music to help improve mood, emotion, or psychological well-being dates back to ancient Egyptian times. However, “the 20th century profession formally began after World War I and World War II when community musicians of all types, both amateur and professional, went to Veterans hospitals around the country to pl
ay for the thousands of veterans suffering both physical and emotional trauma from the wars. The patients’ notable physical and emotional responses to music led the doctors and nurses to request the hiring of musicians by the hospitals. It was soon evident that the hospital musicians needed some prior training before entering the facility and so the demand grew for a college curriculum (http://www.musictherapy.org).” The first degree program opened in 1944, and the profession of Music Therapy has been an established field ever since.
You can now purchase this introductory webinar on Music Therapy by Board-Certified Music Therapist, Rebecca West on our website. In this 2-hour webinar, Rebecca will define music therapy and provide helpful tips and guidelines on how to incorporate music into your clinical practice. We hope you will join us for this engaging webinar!