the use of music to facilitate functional, non-musical goal areas in development, learning, or rehabilitation as administered by a Board Certified Music Therapist. Music therapy may be effective for individuals with developmental disabilities, acquired physical or cognitive disabilities, early intervention, diseases of aging, or mental health challenges. Music interventions may include playing instruments, therapeutic singing, movement exercises facilitated by music, composition, interpretation, or improvisation.
How does the brain process music?
Music activates many areas of the brain, increasing engagement and focus as well as the connection between different parts of the brain. In fact, there is no “music area” in the brain; different parts of music are processed in different areas in both hemispheres.
When we listen to or participate in music (especially our individual preferred music), the level of dopamine, the brain’s reward chemical, increases. Dopamine helps to improve mood, and it is the same chemical that is released when we do other things like eating favorite foods or getting a great night of sleep. It is also a key to neuroplasticity, the ability of the brain to build and reinforce new pathways. This is helpful for teaching new skills or re-learning skills using different brain areas. Since music increases the amount of dopamine in our brains, it helps with neuroplasticity and is a great tool for teaching and reinforcing skills that we use every day.
Music therapists use different elements of music, including rhythm, melody, lyrics, harmony, dynamics, and accompaniment, when they work with clients.
Rhythm provides structure and predictability, helps the brain to organize information, aids in timing of movements, and helps with focus. Melody can indicate the range and direction of body movements, and it also prompts vocal and behavior responses. Melody also aids in memorizing and retaining information. Lyrics, when paired with melody, are a great tool to help with communicating and storing information in the brain. They are often used in school to help students learn and remember things like the alphabet and days of the week! When words are paired with a melody, they can often be easier to remember. Harmony helps the brain anticipate and prepare for movement, changes, and responses through sounds that indicate musical tension or release. Dynamics, or volume levels of music, can help to change our functional arousal or energy levels. They can indicate emphasis on different parts of instructions and help sustain output to tasks. When dynamic levels of music are changed, they can help refocus our attention by sending new signals to the brain. Finally, musical facilitation by the therapist provides structure for clients during tasks and helps them sustain behaviors for longer amounts of time. Accompaniment is often provided on instruments such as guitar, piano, autoharp, and ukulele.
What evidence supports the use of Music therapy for functional skills?
Music therapy as a treatment modality can be found anywhere from schools and clinics to hospitals or individual residences. Because of the way that music engages the brain, it can be used therapeutically to address many functional goals that help individuals perform the daily activities of their lives to the fullest extent possible.
For individuals on the autism spectrum and with other developmental disabilities, music therapy is often used to address and support gains in cognitive, motor coordination, language, speech, behavioral, and psychosocial skills, with therapy goals generalizing to daily life. Significant gains in communication skills have been noted, along with increases in social problem solving skills. Music therapy may also assist in increasing the flexibility and tolerance for change. Improvement of hand-eye coordination, hearing, and speech of persons with developmental delays has also been seen over the course of treatment in music therapy.
For those with brain injuries, music therapy has been found to assist in the areas of executive functioning and emotional adjustment. Other studies have found that music therapy appears to contribute to decreased fatigue, increased positive mood, and increased emotional expression as well as enhancing vocal range and intonation for these individuals.
In the area of motor disorders such as Parkinson’s, improvements in motor function, activities of daily life, and quality of life have been reported. Music therapy also appears to be able to address bradykinesia (slowness of movement) for those with this disorder.
In the medical setting, music therapy has been found helpful in decreasing anxiety and increasing relaxation; it has also helped lessen the need for sedation and additional staff members as well as reducing overall procedure time for pediatric patients during medical imaging procedures. Music therapy has even been found to reduce the level of cortisol (stress hormone) in individuals prior to undergoing surgical procedures. It has been used to address patient needs across the lifespan, even for premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Music therapy may also play a positive role in the area of mental health. Studies have cited it as a tool to improve mood, facilitate emotional expression, and assist in recovery following trauma.
Who Provides Music Therapy?
Music Therapists are nationally certified medical professionals who have completed an accredited degree program, 1200 hours of clinical training, including an internship supervised by a professional therapist, and has passed the national board certification exam. Continued education maintenance ensures that the music therapist keeps up with current practices and evidence-based approaches in the field. It is important to ensure that the therapist providing services has this MT-BC credential for each consumer's protection.
See American Music Therapy Association for more information about accredited programs and music therapy information. See the Certification Board for Music Therapists for information regarding certification.
