Music Therapy Maven — The Business and Science of Music Therapy. The Life of a Music Therapist, Academic, and Career-Minded Mommy.

[Guest Post] Social Media Advocacy Month 2016

January 1, 2016

Happy New Year, Readers! January heralds in not only fresh starts, resolutions, and optimism about the year ahead, but in the online music therapy world we welcome the annual Social Media Advocacy Project! Now in its 6th year, this project brings together the online music therapy community—bloggers and podcasters alike—who spend the month talking about […]

2 comments Read more…

Happy Holidays!

December 24, 2015

Happy Holidays from my family to yours!

0 comments Read more…

[PsychToday] Music, Smell, and Holiday Shopping

December 23, 2015

At the time of writing this post, we are in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Halloween candy has long been consumed, Thanksgiving meals digested, Hannakah candles lit, Solstice passed. All that’s left now is Christmas. Of all those holidays, Christmas is arguably the most ubiquitous, in particular for those […]

0 comments Read more…

[#PsychToday] The Evolution of Music: A Bonding Effect?

December 9, 2015

Image courtesy of Ambro at FreeDigitalPhoto.net I’ve performed in many ensembles over the years—band, orchestra, choir, and chamber groups—and have yet to find a music group as socially and emotionally connected as the marching band. Not to say I haven’t felt connected to my fellow choral, orchestra, and wind ensemble peers, but there’s something about […]

0 comments Read more…

3 Must-Read Articles of the Week

November 5, 2015

Every once in awhile I read a blog post or article worth sharing with my readers. This week, there are three. These three articles are very different in topic and style. One describes living as an autistic person, another is about music therapy and iPods, and the third outlines research on music for maladaptive emotion […]

0 comments Read more…

[PsychToday] 3 Musical Ways to Influence a Child’s Emotions

October 22, 2015

When people ask me what I do, and I say I’m a music therapist, I generally get one of three responses: The Curious Question: “Music therapy…what’s that?” The Personal Connection: “You’re a music therapist?! Oh my goodness, my (mom/dad/grandmother/friend/child) had a music therapist and it was fantastic!” The Emotional Association: “Oh I love music therapy! […]

0 comments Read more…

The Dangers of Labels and Perceptions

October 8, 2015

This post is inspired by two completely different media pieces that I have read/watched in the past 24 hours. The first is a blog post published on Parents.com imploring professionals and non-professionals to stop using the terms “low functioning” and “high functioning” to describe children on the spectrum. The second, a segment that aired on […]

0 comments Read more…

[PsychToday] Scoping out Sticky Songs

September 23, 2015

Pop quiz time! What do the following phrases have in common? I’ve got my baby back, baby back, baby back, I’ve got my baby back, baby back ,baby back… Who let the dog’s out! Woof, woof, woof, woof…. Give me a break! Give me a break. Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat […]

0 comments Read more…