September 6, 2008 -- Music Therapy in Public Schools Part 2

Debbie Dacus is our guest today. She has over 20 years experience and works for Birdville ISD and maintains a private practice. She has also co-authored Socially Smart: Teaching Social Skills Through Scripts and Songs, a resource for teaching social skills to students with communication disorders and Learning Through Music: Music Therapy Strategies for Special Education. Listen to the show here.

August 30, 2008 - Music Therapy in Rise Schools

Veronica Llanos Butler, MT-BC, MSEd, MT-BC, LMT, NMT Fellow, is our guest this week. Veronica is currently the music therapist and music therapy internship program director at The Rise School of Houston, a non-profit early intervention preschool for children with and without developmental disabilities ages 6 months to 6 years of age. Listen to the show here, or click on the play button on the right.

August 23, 2008 - Music Therapy in a Consult-to-Program Model

Michelle Kennemer, MT-BC, Bill Matney, MA, MT-BC, and Mary Lawrence, MT-BC, are my guests this week to talk about the music therapy program in Lewisville ISD. They describe the Consult-to-Program Model and tell about their experiences as music therapists in public schools. To listen to this show, click here.

August 16, 2008 - Music Therapy University Degree Programs

Continuing our Music Therapy in Schools Series, Dr. Ed Kahler, Director of Music Therapy at West Texas A & M University, is our guest this week. He describes what a music therapy student might expect. Klacey called in to share her story about why she decided to get a music therapy degree. Listen to this very compelling show here.

Thanks to Kevin Lindstrom for guest-hosting this week. I was headed towards a plane coming back from a meeting with Dr. Kahler. We tried to make time for me to give a live interview, but the transportation schedule did not allow that. Kevin and Ed were wonderful, though, and I encourage all of you to download this show.

August 9, 2008 - Music Therapy in Schools Series

This week we’re beginning our Music Therapy in Schools Series. Krystal Demaine called in to discuss some research she's participating in for children with Autism and public school assessments.

Listen here to find out more.

August 2, 2008 - World Congress & Music and Neurosciences

This week Robert Krout called in to tell us about the 12th World Congress on Music Therapy in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Krystal Demaine shared her experiences at the Neurosciences and Music conference in Montreal.

The World Federation of Music Therapy, Incorporated (WFMT) is the only international organization dedicated to the development and promotion of music therapy world wide and was established at the 5th World Congress of Music Therapy in Genoa Italy, in 1985. The principal objective of the WFMT is to act as the International Organization for the profession of music therapy.

The main theme of the Neurosciences and Music conference is research on interactions between music and the human brain in healthy and pathologic conditions. The conference focused on many topics such as: the importance of music in the biologic and cultural evolution of man, differences between musicians trained at an early or late age, congenital amusia, absolute pitch, the relationship between the study of music and intellectual abilities in children, musical abilities in behavioural disorders and genetic syndromes, music perception in cochlear implant patients, dystonias in musicians, the effectiveness of music as a means to reduce the perception of pain, and music rehabilitation. The event is mostly targeted to medical professionals, neuroscientists, neurologists, psychologists, educators, music therapists, musicologists, and sound engineers.

To learn more about these conferences, listen here.

August Back to School Series

For August, I am having a back to school series on The Music Therapy Show.

August 2 will have reports from Robert Krout who attended the World Congress in Buenos Aires and Krystal Demaine who attended the Music and Neurosciences conference in Canada.

August 9 will feature Music Therapy Community Music Schools with Wade Richards and Krystal Demaine.

August 16 will feature Music Therapy University Programs with Ed Kahler

August 23 will feature Music Therapy in Public Schools Part 1 with Michelle Kennemer, Bill Matney, and Mary Lawrence.

August 30 will feature Music Therapy in Rise Schools with Veronica Butler

September 6 will feature Music Therapy in Public Schools Part 2 with Debbie Dacus

September 13 will feature Music Therapy in Public Schools Part 3 with Terri Hart and Ann Petty

Thanks for listening!

July 26, 2008 - Future topics, Community Music Schools, Vocal Yoga

This week, we experienced some technical difficulties, so I apologize if you tried to listen live and could not get the show. The archive is working, and you can find it here.

Next month, I want to feature Music Therapy in school settings. If you work in a school setting, leave a comment on this post or send me an email and let me know what you do and which Saturday you will be available for an interview on a future show.

Other shows I'd like to feature are music therapy research, sensory integration, University programs, geriatrics, hospice, private practice, and Guided Imagery in Music. If you have expertise in these areas and would like to be interviewed, please contact me.

Thanks, Wade, for calling in this week and sharing about your work in Community Music Schools. He also described a Vocal Yoga class, so listen to the show for more information.

July 19, 2008 - Developmental Disabilities

Developmental Disabilities are a diverse group of severe chronic conditions that are due to mental and/or physical impairments. People with developmental disabilities have problems with major life activities such as language, mobility, learning, self-help, and independent living.

This week's show gives some ideas and resources for using music therapy with adults with developmental disabilities. When you listen to the show, please take some time to comment on the show (or on this blog entry) and let me know what you think. Please rate the show and offer some ideas about what you'd like to hear in the future.

July 12, 2008 - The Music Therapy Show

Thanks, Kevin, for guest hosting for me this week. I was away, but was able to call in for the Music Therapy in Action segment of the show, which featured Musical Sensory Orientation Training, a Neurologic Music Therapy technique.

Please listen to the show and let me know what you think! Leave a comment here or on the show page and rate the show.

July 5, 2008 - Neurologic Music Therapy

On today's show, we talked with Stephanie Shehan, a Neurologic Music Therapist from Austin, TX. We discussed what neurologic music therapy is and how it works with various clients.

Neurologic Music Therapy is a specialization in music therapy in which you study neurological processes and learn about specific techniques based on neurological research.

Listen to the show here, and while your there, take a moment to leave a comment and rate the show! Let me know what topics you're interested in, or suggest a historical fact or website about music therapy to be featured on the show.

June 28, 2008 - Structuring a Music Therapy Session

Today, we answered a question submitted by a listener on how to structure a session when a parent or caregiver is participating in the session.

• Acknowledge that the caregiver may not be getting his/her social needs met and help the caregiver address these needs outside the session
• Share your goals and treatment plan with the caregiver
• Invite the caregiver to participate in the session in a specific way

For more information, listen to this weeks' show.

And if you have a question or a topic you'd like to have addressed on the show, leave a comment here or email me at jharrismtbc@gmail.com.

June 21, 2008 - Stress Management

This week, we talked about Stress Management and Music Therapy. There are several ways to use music to manage stress.

• Listen to music that you enjoy
• Practice relaxation techniques accompanied by music
• Express your emotions, thoughts, and feelings by writing or improvising a song

Music Therapy becomes a part of Stress Management when a board certified music therapist designs a specific treatment plan with measurable goals to help the client manage stress.

For more information, listen to the archived show.

June 14, 2008 - Music Therapy and Autism

This week's show focused on autism and how music therapy is used with people who have autism. There were some technical difficulties during this show, so hopefully those get ironed out before next week's show.

I encourage everyone who deals with autism in any capacity to check out FAQAutism.com. Cathy Knoll is a music therapist with over 30 years experience with people diagnosed with autism. FAQAutism.com is designed to respond to specific questions from individuals with autism and their family members, teachers, therapists, employers, medical professionals, residential staff, job coaches, and others interested in the well-being of people with autism.

June 7, 2008 - Feedback wanted!

We've been on the air for over a month now and I'm interested in what you think! This week's show is a review of the past 5 shows and I would love to hear your feedback. Email me at jharrismtbc@gmail.com or leave a comment here and tell me what you liked, what you think I can improve on, and what you'd like to hear in the future.

I have some exiting guests lined up for some future shows, but I'm always looking for content ideas and want to know what topics you would like to hear about.

I'd also like to know what you think about our features: the Music Therapy Historical Note of the Week, the Website of the Week, and Music Therapy in Action. Do you have any ideas for these features? Leave me a comment or drop me an email.

Which shows have you listened to?

When do you usually listen?

Is there a time you would prefer to have the live show so that it's more convenient for you to call in?

Let me know! Listen here.