The Music Therapy Show

Meganne Masko serves as Assistant Professor of Music Therapy at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks where she teaches undergraduate courses in music therapy and psychology of music. Ms. Masko holds a Bachelor of Music from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. She completed her Master of Arts degree and music therapy equivalency work at The University of Iowa in Iowa City, and is currently a PhD candidate in music education at The University of Iowa. Her clinical speciality is hospice and palliative care, but she also consults with music educators working with students with special needs in general music classes and music ensembles. Ms. Masko's research interests include the use of music therapy in hospice care, the effects of music therapy on the epigenome, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. In addition to her academic and clinical work, Ms. Masko is the faculty advisor for the Autism Speaks U student organization at the University of North Dakota and an elected member of her local school board.

Barbara Reuer, PhD, MT-BC, is known internationally for her expertise in music-centered wellness and music therapy.  A graduate from the University of Iowa, she is Founder and Director of MusicWorx, a consulting agency based in San Diego, CA, and has more than 35 years of clinical experience in schools, convalescent facilities, retirement homes, hospices, medical and psychiatric hospitals, corrections facilities, substance abuse and eating disorders programs, health spas, as well as teaching at community colleges and universities.  More recently, she has established Resounding Joy, Inc., a non-profit organization to provide supportive and healing music environment for adults and children who are homebound or have special needs. Major areas of Dr. Reuer’s current professional involvement are in the area of music therapy program and job development in San Diego County including an international music therapy internship program.  In addition to her clinical work, she provides workshops and seminars (wellness, community building, stress management and pain management) nationally and internationally for health care professionals, educators and corporate clients.  Public notice of her work extends from recognition in publications to the Lifetime network show, New Attitudes, and the UCSDTV Health Matters:  Music and the Mind.   Dr. Reuer is a 2008 Southern California Cancer Pain Initiative Awardee for excellence in pain management.  She has served as President of the National Association for Music Therapy and is recipient of the American Music Therapy Association’s national Professional Practice Award in 2000 and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008. In 2006, she was awarded by her peers the Betty Isern Howery Award, at the Western Regional AMTA conference, the highest award for professional contribution in the field of music therapy in the region.

We are wrapping up Social Media Advocacy Month on January 25 by talking with Michael Ricucci and Michelle Murphy Akaras of Terra Rising Records. They are creating a documentary on the power of music in education and therapy, making the case for keeping music education in schools and for music therapy as an essential medical treatment.

On January 18, I'll talk with Brian Abrams and Karen Goodman about the music therapy program at Montclair. The Music Therapy training program at Montclair State University is one of the oldest (1969) and foremost training programs in this country. It features closely supervised clinical work each semester, which takes place at both highly reputable local facilities as well as schools, nursing homes and hospitals in New York City. In addition, the program offers a Music Therapy Training Group, Introduction to Guided Imagery and Music, an on-campus music therapy clinic, and specialized courses in piano accompaniment and clinical improvisation. Guest clinicians from the U.S. and other countries frequently make presentations and give workshops. In the past, the following guest clinicians offered workshops and lectures to our students: Clive Robbins, Clare O'Callaghan (Australia), and Elaine Streeter (Great Britain). The MSU Music Therapy program is the only program in the state of New Jersey for educating music therapists and one of the most competitively priced undergraduate and graduate program in the tri-state metropolitan New York City area. All students who have completed this program have found positions.

This week as part of a series on Social Media Advocacy Month for music therapy, I'll be talking with Victoria Storm from Oak Park Music Therapy about why she loves music therapy. Oak Park Music Therapy is based in a client-centered model; clients are served through a process of assessment, treatment/educational planning, intervention, and evaluation. Services are provided by a Board Certified Music Therapist to a variety of clientele.  Home-based individual sessions, contractual arrangements with local facilities, and community based creativity workshops are the core of our offerings. Victoria Storm, MM, MT-BC uses the transformative power of music to assist people to gain new insights through the metaphors inherent in non-verbal and symbolic self expression.  Using the elements of music (rhythm, melody, harmony, texture, tempo, and dynamics) along with lyrics and story, Victoria customizes every session specifically for the needs of each client she sees. Her clinical background includes 20 years of bringing music to persons in need through her work in a community music school, special education classrooms, physical and mental health hospitals, and elder care facilities.  Her Master and Bachelor of Music degrees in Music Therapy are from Western Michigan University. Victoria is a singer/songwriter, forever dedicated to the healing power of music.

John Mahoney is my guest this week. He is assistant professor of music therapy at SUNY New Paltz. He graduated from Hartt College of Music and went on to complete an MM at the Manhattan School of Music. Later, as a member of the faculty at MSM, he received the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts Teacher Recognition Award. After two decades of work in settings ranging from Broadway theatre productions, to Grammy Award-winning recording studio work, to Monte Carlo, to Carnegie Hall, John eventually became interested in the possibilities inherent in music as a therapeutic medium and he attended New York University to complete a Masters Degree in Music Therapy. After earning postgraduate clinical certification in both the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy and Analytical Music Therapy approaches, he joined the staff at the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Center at NYU, where he works with children, adolescents, and adults. He has presented and taught nationally and internationally.

On December 7, my guest is Amy Clements-Cortes, of Notes by Amy. Amy Clements-Cortes began her career as a music therapist, performer, and vocal teacher. Her extensive clinical experience involves working with a variety of clients including: geriatrics, adult psychiatry, palliative care, children, adolescents and adults with learning disabilities and developmental delays, cognitive impairment, Parkinson's, stroke, etcetera. Dr. Clements-Cortes has worked both in hospitals and nursing homes, including 15 years at Baycrest Centre in Toronto, Ontario. Her business Notes By Amy was founded in 1995 and provides a variety of professional services including: Summer Performing Arts Program, Private Music Therapy and Guided Imagery and Music Sessions, Performances, Clinical Music Therapy Supervision and Mentoring, Voice Lessons, Music Therapy Courses, and Research Collaboration.

Barbara Wheeler, PhD, MT-BC, retired in 2011 as Professor of Music Therapy and University Professor at the University of Louisville, where she began the music therapy program in 2000. She holds the designation of Professor Emerita from Montclair State University, where she taught from 1975-2000. She frequently presents and teaches in the U.S. and internationally. Her clinical work has been with a variety of clientele, most recently as Neurologic Music Therapist at several facilities. Barbara edited Music Therapy Research: Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives and Music Therapy Research, 2 Edition, and is coauthor of Clinical Training Guide for the Student Music Therapist. She is currently planning for the third edition of Music Therapy Research and also an edited book that will be published by Guilford Press, tentatively titled Music Therapy Handbook. She has published numerous articles and chapters. She is a past president of the American Music Therapy Association and was recently Interview Co-Editor for Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy.

On November 16, my 160th episode, Ming Yuan Low will tell us about Nordoff Robins Music Therapy. Ming Yuan Low, MA, MT-BC is currently a Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy Level 1 certificate candidate at the Nordoff Robbins center in NYU. Before moving to NYC, Ming has worked as a music therapist for 2 years at a psychiatric health hospital in Denton and saw a few private clients through the auspices of Texas Woman's University, where he also worked as a graduate assistant.Ming received his BS in Music Therapy in 2009 and MA in Music in 2012, both from Texas Woman's University. As a graduate assistant, he has supervised practicum students in several different settings and assisted in music therapy and music in world culture classes. His lectures focused primarily in clinical improvisation, functional/popular keyboard styles, and Chinese music culture. He also taught the experiencial portion of Music in World Cultures course, teaching students (music and non-music majors) Gamelan. At the spring of 2012, Ming presented at the South Western AMTA conference on peak experiences in music therapy and clinical improvisation. He is an active performer, playing piano and keyboards in bands as well as a soloist for over 20 years. His most recent professional gig was the accompanist/keyboard 1 for Denton Community Theater's production of Hairspray.

Blythe LaGasse and Barb Else will be on the show on November 9 to talk about Disaster Preparedness and Recovery. Blythe is a renowned music therapist and professor at Colorado State University, who learned first-hand about disaster recovery after losing her house in the Colorado wild fires. Barb Else is a music therapist and Red Cross volunteer who coordinates the American Music Therapy Association's disaster response efforts.

On November 2, Tracy Richardson will be back to finish the conversation that was cut off a couple of weeks ago about her views on the Masters Level Entry Proposal. Tracy Richardson, Ph.D., MT-BC is a Professor of Music Therapy at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC). She has served as Director of Music Therapy at SMWC since 1995 and is currently the Chairperson of the Department of Music and Theatre. In 2000 she was instrumental in creating and launching the SMWC Master of Arts in Music Therapy program. This program is one of the few graduate music therapy programs in the nation to be offered through distance education. In Fall 2012 she launched the Music Therapy Equivalency Distance program at SMWC, the only program of its kind in the U.S.  In 2005 she earned the Sister Mary Joseph Pomeroy Faculty Excellence Award for Service to the College. Tracy received her B.S. in Music Therapy (SMWC) in 1988, M.S. in Agency Counseling (Indiana State University) in 1999, and a Ph.D. in Counselor Education at Indiana State University (2011). She has been a music therapist for 24 years; she has worked with people with a variety of health issues, including mental health problems, developmental disabilities, and cancer. She is an active singer/songwriter/performer and in 1997 released a self-titled CD. She has sung and played keyboard in bands for over 30 years. She and her husband, George, have three children and reside in Terre Haute, IN.

On October 26, 2012, I will talk to Petra Kern and Marcia Humpal, editors of Early Childhood Music Therapy and Autism Spectrum Disorders.  This book presents a comprehensive overview of current research and music therapy practice for young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families. Topics include an overview of recent developments in ASD, specific implications of evidence-based practice, and a newly conducted meta-analysis providing evidence that music therapy is an effective treatment option for young children with ASD. Subsequent chapters cover assessment, goals and treatment approaches such as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Social Stories™, Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, and the DIR®/Floortime™ Model as well as instructional strategies and techniques used in music therapy practice. The authors discuss collaboration and consultation with interdisciplinary team members, including early childhood educators, speech-language pathologists, and occupational therapists. Family-centered practice, how to integrate music into home routines and insights from music therapists who are parents of children with ASD enrich this work. Case scenarios, examples, checklists, charts, tip sheets, music scores, online and other resources, plus an annotated bibliography complete the book.

Mary Jane Landaker is the music therapy internship director and staff music therapist at Lakemary Center, serving children and adolescents with developmental and psychitric concerns. She also develops and designs products for music therapists including continuing education courses and clinical materials at www.musictherapyworks.com. She blogs about music therapy at www.musictxandme.blogspot.com  

Can you believe it's already time for conference? On October 12, I'll be broadcasting LIVE from the American Music Therapy Association Conference. If you are attending conference, stop by the MusicTherapyEd.com booth between 12:00 noon and 12:30 pm conference time and I'll ask you to talk about who you are, what you do, and what you've learned at conference. If you're not attending conference, you can listen in at 1 pm Eastern/12 noon Central/11 am Mountain/10 am Pacific/1800 GMT and you can hear about the latest techniques and ideas from the American Music Therapy Association!

Board Certified music therapist Tim Ringgold is Director of Sonic Divinity, which provides music therapy services in Orange County, CA, and teaches business and success principles to new and seasoned professionals alike.  Tim serves his music therapy community as Vice President of the Western Region Chapter of the AMTA, and is a regular presenter at both regional and national conferences.  Tim has delivered no less than 16 presentations on music therapy topics since his internship at Musicworx, Inc. in 2008, and has gone on to earn a certificate in NICU music therapy and in HealthRHYTHMS.  Inaugural recipient of the WRAMTA New Professional Award in 2009, Tim is a graduate of Chapman University in Orange, CA, where he served as President of the Student Music Therapy Association, as well as received the Music Therapy Award and Guitar Award from the Chapman Conservatory of Music. Find out more about Tim at www.sonicdivinity.com.