In a career in music therapy, one will have many duties which will be described as follows. A music therapist will use music therapy to address a patient’s goals that they want to achieve, including self care, adapting to changes in one’s life, increasing thinking and comprehension skills, increasing self esteem, and assisting with communication. One will evaluate a patient’s ability to function, a patient’s skills, as well as areas of demand including interpretation, senses, communication, thinking, musical, physical, spiritual, social, and other skills or abilities.
A music therapist may sing or play various instruments including guitar, piano, or several other percussion instruments. One will plan music therapy exercises and actions containing several different musical concepts to obtain a patient’s goal. They will record patient assessments, make suggestions for treatment options, document case summaries and progress made by the patient.
A music therapist communicates with patients to develop an understanding relationship, recognize their progress, as well as reflect about the responses to their musical encounters. One will assist a patient in setting goals for music therapy treatment, with reflections of a patient’s needs, abilities, interests, overall therapy, and course of treatment. They will recognize and document a patient’s responses, progress towards an objective, as well as other results of music therapy.
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A music therapist will have the patient participate in musical experiences to recognize patient’s reactions to various styles of music, elements of music, including rhythm and tempo, as well as musical encounters like improvisation and listening.
Finally, a music therapist creates ways for treatment for defined areas of music therapy, including learning or growth impairments, medical areas, mental health, wellness, and different disabilities.
The education and training required for music therapy are as follows. Most music therapy positions require at least a bachelor’s degree. In most occasions, no on-the-job training or work experience is required. Some programs that colleges may offer in order to become a music therapist are music therapy, therapy, psychology, music, or arts programs. These programs will help a person to be prepared for a job in this field.
The work environment in this field includes being exposed to different sicknesses quite often through caring for patients, work in a laboratory, and controlling sanitation. In this job field, you are inside for most of the time. There are often loud noises and distractions in this work environment. In this occupation, you will sit for at least one third of the time. The working hours are regular, and there is limited travel required in this profession.
A music therapist sits for most of the time, however, there is some physical activity required in this field. You may have to do some standing and walking, however, not too much. You also may have to carry and lift light things weighing under 10 pounds. These things might include paper, instruments, books, files, and tools.
The salary range for the United States is 29570 for the low and 74210 for the high, with a median of 47680. North Carolina’s range is 34530 as a low and 61180 for the high, with an average of 45690.
The future outlook for music therapy in the United States is stable with an employment change from 2014 through 2024 increasing 12 percent. In North Carolina, the annual growth rate is about 17 percent. The predicted annual job openings in North Carolina is 219.
In the magazine article, “Music as Medicine”, many positive effects of music therapy were discussed including stress reducing, enriching the immune system and helping with conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease, depression, Fibromyalgia, and many more. Listening to music was discovered to be more effective in diminishing anxiety than prescriptions before surgery. Additionally, making or listening to music increases the production of immunoglobulin A antibody that kills viruses. Music also reduces the production of cortisol, which is a stress hormone. Finally, music therapy reduces stress, pain, and anxiety in patients of all ages.
In the book, “The Mozart Effect”, many profound discoveries of the effect of music on people was talked about. Music has a strong impact on the mind, and therefore on the body. “Half an hour of music produced the same effect as 10 milligrams of Valium” (Campbell 14).
A music producer named Terry Woodford produced a tape of lullabies that echoed the human heart beat, which could be used to calm newborns and small children, and then gave many tapes out to hospitals and day care programs. At the Helen Keller hospital in Alabama, a test was performed on 59 babies that discovered that when listening to his lullaby music, 94 percent of the crying babies fell asleep immediately with neither a bottle nor a pacifier. “At the University of Alabama at Birmingham, nurses used the Baby-Go-to-Sleep tape for infants recovering from open heart surgery. One baby, struggling on a respirator, was near death when desperate nurses turned to Terry’s tape. To their astonishment, the baby calmed down, fell asleep, and lived” (Campbell 25).
Finally, music helps to treat migraines, anxiety, substance abuse, and several other frequent conditions. Music has “proved helpful with tiny burn victims, babies born addicted to crack cocaine, and children undergoing chemotherapy” (Campbell 26).
