Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - Research Publications
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ItemNo Preview AvailableProfessional Pathways for Musicians with Disability in Victoria, Australia(ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2022-01-02)The work of disabled musicians has become the focus on of an increasingly large body of academic work; however, existing literature rarely provides details about the educational experiences of these musicians, or how disability impacted these experiences. This study interviewed eleven performing musicians living with disability in Australia to elucidate the barriers and enablers that they faced in their music educations and careers. We developed a ‘nested model’ based on a qualitative narrative analysis which identified barriers and enablers coming from ‘the musician’, ‘the self’, ‘other people’, and ‘the system’. We used this model to draw out further themes and counter-themes across the interviews to begin to illuminate the barriers. Each of our participants was able to identify numerous barriers to access, which they had experienced during their musical careers. Despite this, ten of our eleven participants continued to find ways to participate and express their creativity in musical activities, and they provided many practical suggestions for improving access. Future studies that seek perspectives from disabled music students, or those who are in the early stages of their careers, may provide further insights to better understand barriers and enablers.
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ItemReconsidering the Dominant Narratives of the Music Therapy Profession for the Future(Canadian Association of Music Therapists, 2021)Music therapy has always been a research-based profession that is informed by theory. However, many of the theories that we rely on were proposed nearly half a century ago. This paper, which was presented as a keynote to the Canadian Music Therapy Association in 2020, provides one answer to the question of what theoretical perspectives we might privilege if the profession were established now, instead of at that time. Critical theories including intersectionality, post-humanism, and post-ableism are highlighted and practical suggestions are made about how these perspectives would alter the way we describe our practice as music therapists. La musicothérapie repose depuis toujours sur une recherche aux fondements théoriques. Cependant, nombre des théories sur lesquelles nous nous appuyons ont été formulées il y a près d'un demi-siècle. Le présent article, qui a fait l'objet du discours d'ouverture du congrès de l'Association canadienne des musicothérapeutes de 2020, propose une réponse possible à la question des perspectives théoriques qui seraient adoptées si la profession s'était établie aujourd'hui plutôt qu'il y a cinquante ans. On y aborde des théories critiques, portant notamment sur l'intersectionnalité, le post-humanisme et le post-capacitisme, et on y fait des suggestions pratiques sur les variations qu'apporteraient ces perspectives à notre définition de l'exercice de la musicothérapie.
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ItemCorrigendum: What young people think about music, rhythm and trauma: An action research study.(Frontiers Media SA, 2022)[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.905418.].
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ItemExploring the lived experiences of young autistic adults in Nordoff-Robbins music therapy: An interpretative phenomenological analysis(Taylor and Francis Group, 2022)Introduction: Research in music therapy and autistic people to date has predominantly focused on communication and social interaction outcomes. The purpose of this exploration was to explore the lived experiences of young autistic adults in Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy. To our knowledge, the body of research that seeks to understand participants’ perspectives regarding their experiences of music therapy and the goals they want to pursue is limited. Method: Four autistic young adult men who had received at least 6 months of Nordoff-Robbins music therapy services at the Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy at New York University participated in this study. Each participant engaged in four to five interview sessions to share their experiences of Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy and the role it plays in their life. Interviews were analyzed using the IPA method. A summary of the results was shared with each participant to ensure sensitivity to and accuracy of their lived experiences. Results: Three themes emerged from the analysis: (1) Participants attend Nordoff-Robbins music therapy to develop their musicianship and personal selves; (2) participants create meaningful relationships with their peers, music therapists, and music; and (3) participants bring their sociocultural identities into music therapy sessions. Discussion: Participants’ responses led to a critical reexamining of “the music child”, challenging music therapy research and practice agendas of normalizing autistic social and communication behaviors, and suggest the need for more research that collaborates and centers the autistic community.
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ItemAdolescents and Music Therapy: Contextualized Recommendations for Research and Practice(Oxford University Press, 2020-03-01)Music therapists have been working with, writing about, and researching their work with adolescents for many decades. This paper provides a reflective review of the research literature in the field that is categorized in three contexts: education, mental health, and community. Grouping knowledge in this way affords a new perspective on how music therapists describe adolescents, including the terms we use to describe them, the types of programs we offer, the approaches to research that are most popular, and the way we talk about the focus of therapy. Distinctions between research in these fields are highlighted, with reference to the beliefs and values that are most congruent with each of these contexts. Following this reflective review on the literature, I provide five recommendations for consideration by researchers and practitioners. These include: determining if and when evidence is an appropriate focus; continuing to seek understanding; not underestimating the value of positive experiences; avoiding an exclusive focus on the music therapist’s perspective; and being realistic about the outcomes of group versus individual therapy. The paper concludes with an illustrative example to emphasize how one adolescent might be “seen” differently in each context.
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ItemMusic, adversity and flourishing: Exploring experiences of a community music therapy group for Australian youth(SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD, 2022-05)Community music therapy is a widely accepted approach that has its origins in the British community music scene and was carefully developed with respect to participatory values dominant in Norwegian practice. This article describes the way an Australian community music therapy programme for youth has been experienced by a group of diverse young people participating in a programme that is for youth who share an enthusiasm and a passion for music and often bring formidable talent to the group. They are also young people who are experiencing adversity due to chronic illness, mental ill-health, unstable homes lives or acute personal crisis or challenge. Qualitative analysis of interviews identified a number of themes including It is like a family; We understand one another’s life experiences and It is good for me, and also identified that diverse group members responded first to the emphasis on the value of music-based experiences, but strongly benefitted from the understanding afforded of the challenges they faced as a result of adverse life experiences. Possible distinctions between traditional group music therapy with adolescents and community music therapy are considered, with implications for programme descriptions and the level of focus on music and support adopted by facilitators.
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ItemWhat Young People Think About Music, Rhythm and Trauma: An Action Research Study(FRONTIERS MEDIA SA, 2022-06-14)A number of popular theories about trauma have suggested rhythm has potential as a mechanism for regulating arousal levels. However, there is very little literature examining this proposal from the perspective of the young people who might benefit. This action research project addresses this gap by collaborating with four groups of children in the out-of-home-care system to discover what they wanted from music therapists who brought a strong focus on rhythm-based activities. The four music therapy groups took place over a 12 month period and each cycle of action and reflection led to adjustments in what activities were offered, as well as exploring different levels of structure and ways of building relationships in the groups. The initial group incorporated a strong emphasis on highly structured rhythm-based activities, but young people found the format difficult to engage with. The second cycle included more opportunities for creativity and self-direction within semi-structured activities which children reported enjoying, but too much freedom also became overwhelming at times. The two groups in the third cycle seemed to balance structure and responsiveness successfully but were also influenced by the introduction of individual sessions prior to group commencement, which was designed to contribute to safety and trust building. Final reflections on the role of rhythm in supporting young people who have had adverse experiences were centred around the ideas of co-regulation. This was qualitatively different to our expectations that practicing rhythm-based activities would lead to an expanded window of tolerance that resulted in less time being spent in either hypo-arousal or hyper-arousal. Instead of entraining to an external rhythm, young people felt safe when their rhythms were matched, even if they were irregular, out of time and unpredictable. The small moments of co-regulation resulted in pleasure, comfort, satisfaction and peace and these moments were highly valued by the young people, who described just wanting to be relaxed and happy. Although not as rhythm-specific as the literature might suggest, music making with trusted adults helped the young people in this study feel more content.
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ItemNo Preview AvailableDeconstructing trauma narratives: A critical interpretive synthesis of research into music therapy and psychological trauma in adults(Elsevier BV, 2022-02-01)The objective of this paper is to critically examine assumptions underpinning research into music therapy and psychological trauma with adult populations. A critical interpretive synthesis was conducted, iteratively and inductively analysing a recently published body of research literature. The results of this process indicate that clinical discourse and psychiatric constructions of trauma recovery are privileged in this body of literature and a lack of participant voice has been identified. Additionally, the researchers extended the analysis of trauma discourses, through constructing two music-based constructs based on themes emerging in the included literature, as well as broader literature review, to understand how these discourses have been assumed within contemporary music therapy research. We called these constructs ‘Time’ and ‘Silence’, and through a process of deductive and interpretive analysis, uncovered a range of sub-themes. These related to assumptions around containing and structuring functions of rhythm, the use of music as an anchor in the present moment, the ubiquity of linear trauma origin stories, silence as meaningful communication, and systems which compound trauma.
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ItemNo Preview Available
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ItemStructure, agency and community: Using online music gatherings to support social inclusion for people with disabilities in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic(GRIEG ACADEMY, 2022-05-27)Introduction: In the wake of COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns in the southern states of Australia, many community music and music therapy projects shifted to an online format. This paper discusses the formation and creation of four online music groups aimed at people with disability, including two groups for children and two for adults. The aim of the study was to explore the use of online technologies to support social inclusion and wellbeing when participants were physically isolated. Method: This study positioned group participants as co-researchers to recognize the expertise many people with disability hold from being housebound or socially isolated. We adopted an action research framework in which participants provided ongoing reflections on the use of technology, access, musical foci and social interaction to iteratively develop the sessions through cycles of reflexive action. These data were triangulated with data collected through participant observation and individual interviews. Results: The structured format of the sessions created online spaces for people with different disability, age and gender identities to explore their creativity together. Far from limiting participants’ autonomy and safety, the structured setting promoted their agency in decision-making and shaping the groups to meet their needs. Discussion: Many participants interacted with the group or adapted to the online experiences in ways which the authors had not anticipated. While we were expecting our cohort to have expertise with social isolation, we found that they also had high levels of expertise as passionate musicians, which they used to frame the activities of the online gatherings.