Resources & references

Watch as a board-certified music therapist leads an individual session with an autistic man. Through instrument playing, singing, and songwriting, the client develops communication, strengthens social skills, and gains confidence.

Music therapy is used to help autistic children address develpmental goals. Watch registered music therapists lead an individual session with a child using instrument playing, improvisation, and singing to enhance communication and language development.

John Wallis, a Nordoff Robbins music therapist, works with Eddie, an older adult with Alzheimer’s disease showing how music therapy gives him the opportunity and means to step back into the present, reconnecting with past experiences and his own identity.

Music therapist Max Terán explains what music therapy is, who can benefit, how it can help diverse populations, and how he became a music therapist.

A study documenting the practice of three Canadian music therapists who specialize in adolescent mental health. They share their experience, discuss goals within single-session open groups and program structures in brief therapy and the professional skills required for this work.

This report tells how music therapists help the various needs of students in a school for the blind. Different music therapy interventions are described, and music therapists explain how they address goals based on their students' Individual education plan. 

This video (in Spanish) explains how music has been used therapeutically throughout history. It describes how music was used in ancient civilizations, the Middle Ages, the renaissance, the baroque period, and the modern age, when music therapy was established as a profession.

This research article presents a case study of an adult man with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who participated in music therapy sessions. The results determined that music improvisation improved affect regulation, exploration of trauma-related issues, and self-agency.

Daniel Torres explains how music stimulates the brain, what humanistic music therapy is, and how music therapy applies these principles to support development and rehabilitation across ages and needs.

Music therapist Sheila Pereiro shares about her experiences working with diverse populations and how music therapy can improve self-expression, connection with others, and quality of life.

A comprehensive guide to music therapy with young children, providing a detailed examination of development from birth to age five, with theoretical perspectives and extensive scales of developmental milestones. The author categorizes development within five levels. An expansive catalog of musical goals is provided for singing, playing, moving, and musical understanding within each level.

This book has been designed as a textbook on music therapy for pediatric and adult patients receiving hospice care; it is divided into 4 parts. Part I is designed to provide foundational information on hospice and hospice music therapy. Part 2 includes descriptions of theory, assessment, roles of the therapist, and developmental issues in practice. Part 3 is focused on educational and professional issues. Part 4 is focused on advancing hospice music therapy.