Resources & references

Read an article introducing music therapy, how it works, who it can benefit, and explaining the scientific mechanisms underlying the field.

This article describes a qualitative single-case study of the treatment of a woman having problems with grief and finding a personal identity. The music therapist used several techniques of improvisation to support the client's cautious steps into a new musical and a new personal world.

Watch music therapist, Sarra Erb, use singing to help babies in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to assist their development.

Symphony musicians, a music therapist, and a speech language pathologist work together with dementia patients to facilitate a therapeutic experience that enhances long term memories, reminiscence, and quality of life.

Learn how music therapy helps a young girl with cerebral palsy and a cerebral visual impairment. Access to music therapy in Northern Ireland for blind/visually impaired children is also discussed.

Watch as music therapist Kelsey MacDonald provides music therapy sessions to a patient with dementia at Aberdeen Hospital and listen to testimonials from the patient's daughter and the director of the palliative care unit.

Watch how Benji and his music therapist engage together to work towards his goals targeting collaboration, communication, and social skills.

Watch a video of a music therapist working with a young autistic girl. Goals discussed include communication, social skills and functional skills.

Watch a video about music therapy in an aged care center. The music therapist discusses how he approaches his job in this setting, and gives examples of how music therapy has helped certain clients.

This article provides background information on visual impairments and the impact of these disorders on social connectedness, activities of daily living, mood, quality of life, and child development. Implications and potential for music therapy for blind/visually impaired children and adults are discussed.

 Music therapy improves the health of premature babies and boosts parental bonding.

Click here to watch a video about this article. 

This paper updates an earlier review that encouraged the music therapy community to continuing investigating the efficacy of music therapy in treatment of substance abuse. 12 studies met inclusion for this review. The most common music therapy method to be investigated was lyric analysis, followed by music and imagery methods, and then songwriting. Recommendations include suggestions for reducing bias in future studies and continued research.