Guinevere Rose Whitford

IS GROUP MUSIC-MAKING A METHOD OF MUSIC THERAPY?

Have you ever experienced how good it feels to sing songs with a group of friends while on a road-trip, or to go caroling with family over the holidays? Or have you been a part of a drumming circle and noticed how the rhythm is not just in your hands on the drum but actually goes through your whole body? As a music therapy student, I wanted to choose my research topic to be something related to this field, as I strongly believe in the healing powers of music and I want to learn as much as possible about what is going on in the realm of music therapy. Earlier this year, I came across an article in the very first issue of the Journal of Music Therapy which began publication in 1964. The article was about introducing chamber music (small group form music played together) as a beneficial method of therapy. At the time, music therapy as a profession was in its beginning stages, and this idea of group music was a brand new concept. I found this to be really intriguing and immediately had questions about what has developed since that point. Is group music now an accepted and established practice of music therapy today? If so, what are some of the methods used and effects on patients from group music in therapy? My research began with this article in the Journal of Music Therapy that originally grabbed my attention. Entitled Chamber Music - Proposed as a Therapeutic Medium, the author Delight Lewis writes about this new experiment in order to incite some degree of interest, excitement (19). Lewis was a music therapist who created an experimental program for long-term mental health patients at the Boston State Hospital. For a six-month period, a small group of patients met once a week coming together to play classical string chamber music. There was no particular objective in mind, and the practice sessions were informal. The patients were at first hard-pressed to actually be together enough to actually make music, as each player was a permanent resident of the hospital for various severe mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia or lobotomy survivors. As time progressed, however, these players slowly came to override their inner difficulties. The lobotomized player started the program off with playing through all the music in rigid tempo, despite his comrades being a beat and a half off the entire piece. He

eventually learned to listen to the others and even made eye contact for the last note. He even came to a smile at the end of the last session, astounding all of the hospital staff, who had never before seen this. Lewis ended his article admitting that at that time during the 60s, chamber music as therapy is only an exciting concept, an idea that has just begun to develop (20). This did seem exciting, and so I began looking for more current sources on this topic. I found an article in the South African Journal of Psychology from 1999, entitled Music Therapy Improvisational Groups with Adults: Towards De-Stressing in South Africa, by Mercedes Paulicevic. The author is a music therapist and begins by explaining Improvisation in music therapy is non-verbal communication (94). The paper is on four aspects of group music in an experiment to alleviate stress in normal-functioning adults. During this time period in South Africa, the nation was in upheaval, and violence was commonplace. The people were in the middle of great societal instability which created an extremely stressful environment. The methods employed of improvising on various instruments, creating spontaneous music, addressed the emotions of the participants ( 95). During sessions, several activities were used. One person would make music with one other person at a time, taking turns to make a musical conversation. Ostinato improvisation was another activity, in which a few members provided either a stable melody or solid rhythm as the background, and the others improvised on top of this. This provided a metaphor for interpersonal dependency and how we are affected by our environment (98). There was also unstructured singing, which began shakily with the participants feeling self-conscious, but in time the singing transformed into a coherent group music that pleased and surprised everyone. The group met for 90 minute weekly sessions for six weeks. In discussions at the end of the six weeks, the members of the group felt emotionally positive from this musicmaking, and they spontaneously report(ed) on feeling relaxed and slowed up, as a result of the non-verbal focus (Paulicevic 100). Paulicevic concludes that this program provided great relief of tension and anxiety during this time of South African instability. It would seem, then, that group improvisations using the methods described above, could become a blueprint for addressing stress and burn-out, and for enriching personal creativity in a transcultural, non-verbal, and playful way (Paulicevic 101). Although this study took place in South Africa and was geared toward addressing the stress of an uncertain political climate, I feel that as college students, we can easily relate to living in a stressful environment. College life

is full of deadlines and exams and long nights of study, all adding up to negative stress and possible burn-out. As a music student, I can really identify with this concept of group music being a help in getting through my education. I began wondering if there were studies in connection with music therapy and college students in particular. I then found my next source from a recent Health magazine, entitled Impact of Group Music Therapy on the Depression Mood of College Students (Jinliang, Haizen, and Dajun). This study focused not only on depression but also overall mental health among college students in China. There were 80 students involved, divided into two groups. One group received group music therapy and the others made up the control group. Those receiving therapy were involved in relaxation and attention training, rhythm and movement, and music with painting (152). The results were charted in tables and the authors stated, This indicates that, music therapy, through amelioration of the depressive symptoms of the participants in the experimental group, improves the overall mental health of the participants (Jinliang, Haizhen, and Dajun 153). While this seemed like another positive study toward group music therapy, many details of the experiment were omitted in this article, namely the length and number of music sessions, and the particulars of the methods employed. For my research, I was looking more for specific methods and examples of ways in which group music was used toward benefiting others, so I continued my search. The next source I found, from the Psychosocial Rehabilitation Journal was a study that took place in the form of an African polyrhythmic drum ensemble. The participants of the study were patients of psychiatric rehabilitation programs in Kansas City. The article begins with a doubtful start, African drumming at the mental health center? the executive director asked with a skeptical gaze. How will that serve our clients in the community support program? (Longhofer and Floersch 5). This response led me to wonder if music therapists often meet with similar hesitancy at the onset of implementing such group music programs. Perhaps group music therapy is being practiced in various ways, but is maybe not yet so established that it could be called mainstream. The methods described for this study were sessions of fifty minutes where twelve patients met on a weekly basis for six months. The main activity was the learning of Dagbama traditional African drumming, with dancing and singing involved as well. The patients were described as being diagnosed with severe mental illnesses including schizophrenia, manic depression, and multiple personality disorder. As the drumming sessions progressed, the positive benefits became apparent as the participants became hooked not only on the music but also on the group process (Longhofer and Floersch 5). The authors explained that this study achieved a fundamental goal of the International Association of

Psychosocial Rehabilitation where a program offers group experiences that are designed to enhance individuals skills and to foster a sense of community and healthy participation in normalizing adult activities (6). The drumming ensemble became such a success that performances at mental health center banquets and community concerts were incorporated. This group study focused on social integration and provided the participants with a meaningful group role which increased their self-esteem (Longhofer and Floersh 5). After my research about this drumming ensemble, I wanted to follow up on this with my African Djembe drum teacher, Lawrence Green. I remembered him speaking of his experiences with a drumming program that sounded similar to my previous source. From our interview, I learned that Mr.Greene worked at Inner Harbor, a program near Atlanta, Georgia, directed by a music therapist. The participants were children and adolescents, who ranged from long-term patients of state mental hospitals and short-term patients with behavioral disorders, to juvenile delinquents who were finishing prison sentences. Here, these young people came for an eight week program where Djembe drumming was the main therapy. The youth were divided into groups, and Lawrence, from his point of view as a drumming instructor of the program, described the differences of the groups. He felt that at times, for the children of the mental hospital, they were often unable to keep their focus as a group, which lessened the therapeutic benefits, whereas those from the prison system were immensely benefited from this form of group music. For them, it was a readjustment to society, and when the music wasnt coming together for the group, it brought them to openup and talk about their interpersonal problems so that they could get back together and get on with the music. Similar to my last source of the Kansas City study, these drummers also enjoyed many performances as well as positive feedback from the audience. Mr.Greene spoke about the structure of the drumming group bringing a lot of benefit and stability to those at Inner Harbor, and how he saw this therapeutic program making way for a lot of needed changed behavior. When I began my research for this essay, I was unsure of what I might find in the world of music therapy that might answer my questions on the topic. It is apparent that the overall effect of those participating in group music therapy was largely positive. I am glad to have learned of some different approaches to group music methods, and while I have a glimpse into the overall current establishment of this type of therapy, I would be interested to learn more about other types of music groups that I, personally, would like to one day use in my career as a music therapist. For example, I am wondering if forming a choir with nursing home residents who then gave performances

at the local childrens hospitals, mental health centers, etc., might be a positive therapy for everyone involved. look forward to exploring future possibilities in my studies of music therapy.

Works Cited Greene, Lawrence. Personal interview. 4 Oct. 2011. Lewis, Delight. Chamber Music - Proposed as a Therapeutic Medium. Journal of Music Therapy 1.1 (1964):19-

20. Print.

Longhofer, Jeffrey, and Floersch, Jerry. African Drumming and Psychiatric Rehabilitation. Psychosocial Rehabilitation Journal 16.4 (1993): 3-11. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Oct. 2011.

Pavlicevic, Mercedes. Music Therapy Improvisation Grroups with Adults: Towards De-Stressing in South Africa. South African Journal of Psychology 29.2 (1999): 94-100. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Oct. 2011.

Jinliang, Wang, Haizen, Wang, and Dajun, Zhang. Impact of Group Music Therapy on the Depression Mood of College Students. Health 3.3 (2011) 151-155. Academic Search Complete. Web. 3 Oct. 2011.