Answer:
Music Therapy is a research based health care profession that uses music to help clients reach their therapeutic goals. These goals are accomplished within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed either a bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate degree in music therapy.
Let’s dig a bit deeper into this definition.
☛ “Researched based” points to the fact that empirical research on the effectiveness of music therapy is being done at many universities throughout the world.
☛ “Health care profession” means that music therapy is akin to such fields as physical therapy, speech therapy, or occupational therapy.
☛ “Uses music to help clients reach their therapeutic goals” means that music therapists are helping clients work on traditional therapeutic goals that might typically be found on an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or an Individualized Transition Plan (ITP). For example, a music therapist working with a child with Down syndrome might be addressing a speech therapy goal of improved articulation. The music therapist can use custom written songs that have many of the words or sounds that the child is struggling with. The child then gets to have fun singing the song and practicing that sound or word many times. With music therapy, you can get the repetition without the monotony!
Let’s dig a bit deeper into this definition.
☛ “Researched based” points to the fact that empirical research on the effectiveness of music therapy is being done at many universities throughout the world.
☛ “Health care profession” means that music therapy is akin to such fields as physical therapy, speech therapy, or occupational therapy.
☛ “Uses music to help clients reach their therapeutic goals” means that music therapists are helping clients work on traditional therapeutic goals that might typically be found on an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or an Individualized Transition Plan (ITP). For example, a music therapist working with a child with Down syndrome might be addressing a speech therapy goal of improved articulation. The music therapist can use custom written songs that have many of the words or sounds that the child is struggling with. The child then gets to have fun singing the song and practicing that sound or word many times. With music therapy, you can get the repetition without the monotony!
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