Music As Therapy

Music As Therapy

There was never a question in my mind that music possesses a strong element to help people. It has always been a stress reliever in my life. There is research that supports the belief that music is an instrumental part or impact on a wider realm of physical and mental disorders or disabilities. Music is known to set the mood or atmosphere for all types of situations. There is extensive research completed on this subject.

Just take a look around. When you look at a movie it is filled with just the right music at the right time to convey the way the writer/ director wants you to feel. Call any major corporation for customer service assistance and you will here hold music to make you feel less tense and patient. This usually has an adverse affect because we know what they’re trying to do.

Music Therapy is the prescribed use of music and musical interventions to restore, maintain, and improve emotional, physical, physiological, and spiritual health and well-being. These are the key elements which define interventions as music therapy. Music Therapy is goal oriented and provides a system to work towards a specific therapeutic goal and objective. Goals identified can include communicative, academic, motor emotional and social skills. In the end the music development learned in the sessions hopefully have a relaxing, positive effect on the client’s physical, psychological and socio-economical functioning. Music Therapy became a profession in 1950 with the establishment of the National Association for Music Therapy and the American Association for Music Therapy Association. (AMTA) There were nonmusical goals set for the professional setting. “They included: improving communication skills, decreasing inappropriate ...

... middle of paper ...

...day that music is powerful medicine. It has a great affect on tearing down the walls of silence and affliction of Alzheimer’s, depression, injuries, healing. And did you know that kids, who study the arts, do an average of forty points higher in math and science? Music education is superior to even computer instruction in enhancing early childhood mental capacity and special intelligence. Music therapists prove every single day that music is powerful medicine. (Richards Institute of Education and Research) Music is Magic.

Works Cited

American Music Therapy Association http://www.musictherapy.ort/faqs.html

Holistic-Online http://www.holisticonline.com/stress/stress_music-therapy.htm

Richards Institute of Education and Research

http://www.educationthroughmusic.com/brainarticles.htm#Michael%20Green

War child http://www.warchild.org/projects/cenre/methods.html