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Informative Essay: The Field Of Music Therapy

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Holland Woodard
English three
12 January, 2017
MLA
Music Therapy

The field of music therapy is one of the oldest forms of therapy. It can be applied to almost every ailment mental or physical and can be altered to fit almost any culture. Music therapy is defined as ¨a type of expressive arts therapy that uses music to improve and maintain the physical, psychological, and social well-being of individuals, involves a broad range of activities, such as listening to music, singing, and playing a musical instrument¨. Music has the ability to reach people in a way traditional therapies can’t. Music alters your brain chemistry in that it increases serotonin and dopamine levels which are responsible for positive emotions. Music also stimulates …show more content…

using music for medicinal purposes dates back to ancient times. Evidence of music used to treat people's ailments can be found in biblical scriptures and historical writings of ancient civilizations such as Egypt, China, India, Greece and Rome. Today, the power of music remains the same but music is used in a different manor than it was in ancient times. The development of music therapy as profession began to develop during World War I and II. The first university to create a music therapist program was Michigan state university in 1944. Currently there about ninety-three music programs and universities around the world. The universities that offer music therapy programs also allow supervised applications of the information to people seeking a music therapist. Although they offer music therapy programs There is no degree specifically for music therapy but a PhD in music education is sufficient to practice as a music therapist.

Music therapy is a very broad term for this branch of therapy. There are several sub specialties under the umbrella of music therapy. The treatment types can range from teaching the patient to play an instrument, to simply listening to specific types of music to control anxiety, depression, pain, ect., to using the tone of music to help people with autism communicate. Each area of music therapy has shown substantial progress …show more content…

Autism is defined as ¨a mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts¨. Music is now being used to break down the language barrier for people with autism. Instead of the frustrating process of the person trying to communicate how they are feeling while other people are trying to guess what is going on music is providing an effective alternative. When someone with autism wants to express discontent or sadness they can simply play a song that has a slower more saddening melody to communicate their own feelings. They can also use this method to express happiness and love. Music has also been used to sooth people with autism. For some simply listing to a soothing song does the trick for others playing an instrument or singing is effective in calming them

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