Approximate year that you formulated your vision, your role/background at that time, and musical experience.
I began experimenting with using my wire-strung harp in my nursing and hospice practice in about 1988, and by 1990 I was actively researching how I might learn about, and possibly receive training in, the appropriate use of sound and music therapeutically.
Work: I was an RN, working in the integrative medical office of Camphill Village, a community with special-needs adults based on the holistic philosophy of Anthroposophy. I had a 20 year background in complementary/integrative healing before I became an RN in 1984. Music and the arts are an important and ever-present part of Camphill Village life. In addition, anthroposophy supports a deep exploration and expression of the therapeutic benefits of sound and music, and I was encouraged by my colleagues to play for people. I was also involved with hospice as a volunteer, as I had been part of our county hospice initiative in the early 1980s at the same time I was attending nursing school locally. All of us: MDs, nurses, etc. were volunteers. Our hospice training was extraordinary, as it included visits and workshops with the pioneers of the movement: Bernie Siegel, MD; Stephan and Ondrea Levine; Michael Murphy, MD; Jerry Jampolsky, MD, etc.
Music: I took up the cláirseach in 1986, when my son built me a fine 30-string harp, using the Trinity College plan from Robinson’s Harp Shop. My musical background was simply as an ear-trained folk musician and singer; I couldn’t really read music. I had participated in my parish choir from a young age and various choruses and choirs throughout my life because singing for the joy of it is an essential part of my life. I had taught myself to play guitar at 14 to accompany my singing. Any performing I did was of traditional songs and ballads in high school and college, and as a cantor in my parish and in a local chorus.
When I began playing the harp, I started producing workshops and concerts to bring the teachers here: the first was Chris Caswell doing his wonderful Harp Quest weekend workshop and a concert. I had been playing just 3 months, and that workshop was the beginning of the Hudson Valley Harp Circle and dear harping friendships. Soon afterwards, I produced a workshop and concert with Ann Heymann. They were my first teachers.
Describe your vision
You might say that my initial vision was centered on simply becoming proficient and educating myself so that I might skillfully provide therapeutic music to meet my patients’ individual needs in the moment, but also offer something to and in community. I did not have a concrete vision when I began, but my life pattern has always been that when I am one-pointedly focused on and enthusiastic about something, what I need to fulfill it comes towards me. The challenge is listening to one’s inner voice and heart---what brings me joy? And then, discerning the right actions to take. In addition, I have always enrolled others so that what I’m interested in becomes a community or group endeavor, not just my own.
So, as my knowledge deepened – I trained with Don Campbell’s Toning School, for example, trained in Gregorian chant; had the opportunity to receive guidance and indications from Therese Schroeder-Sheker, met with Tina Tourin about the program she was beginning in VT, and then heard about MHTP’s inception in the FHJ – my goal became to start and host MHTP classes right here. MHTP appealed to me because it was a 501c3, run by a group of people, not one charismatic person’s property. So, I did that, and was soon thrown into teaching for MHTP when the teacher (Laurie Riley) was unable to come at the last minute because of illness. Then I was asked to be on the MHTP Board in 1998 as MHTP was re-structuring. 1998 was the point where my organizational vision started to manifest, and out of that grew my vision for the profession.
My vision during my 18 years as Board Member or ED of MHTP was:
A. That the Music for Healing & Transition Program would become recognized and respected as a leader in training therapeutic musicians serving in healthcare institutions of all kinds: hospitals, hospices, nursing homes, etc.
B. That the profession of therapeutic musician, and particularly Certified Music Practitioner, would be recognized as an essential part of patient care in healthcare. I had some subsidiary goals as well. One was that MHTP would welcome and train singers and musicians who played other instruments besides the harp, and that at least half of our grads would not be harpers/harpists. I believe that the harp is not the only therapeutic instrument.
Name 3-5 important behaviors, attributes or steps that you took to successfully manifest your vision.
The first is listening to, and following my heart. Following one’s intuition. An example of this is my long-held feeling (along with my dear colleague Mona Peck) that our profession has a lot to offer conservatory-trained musicians as a career-path, and visa versa. By following that patiently, MHTP came to hold classes at the Knoxville (TN) Symphony, training 5 of their musicians. Out of that, came MHTP’s wonderful current partnership with the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA.
A second is allowing things to grow organically. This means not being hasty, allowing things to evolve. Being patient. It also means not being the slave of what the corporate/institutional/status quo dictates as being the “correct” way to proceed.
A third is being willing to be creative and what you might call prophetic. One example of this for me was my perception that when I came to MHTP it was so focused on being “scientific” that we were not preparing our students to be the healers that they were. So, encouraged by my Therapeutic Touch mentor Dolores Krieger, I came up with the modality of Unitative Listening, which is directly built on the process of Therapeutic Touch. Unitative Listening has proven to be an essential part of MHTP’s curriculum. Out of my strong feeling that therapeutic musicianship included a transpersonal dimension, came insisting on the NSBTM Standard that programs accredited by the NSBTM would include instruction in a transpersonal modality.
A fourth behavior or factor is about flexibility and trust. Listening to and trusting one’s colleagues. That was how the MHTP Board functioned. Compromising without compromising one’s integrity or one’s vision. One example of this outside of MHTP is how the Standards of the NSBTM came into being: those of us participating in that effort worked together patiently, using the measure Stella Benson presented to us: “Can I live with it?”
I think a fifth is knowing when one’s job is done and when it is important to hand things over so that the organization can grow in new ways.
Name 2-3 major disappointments and what you learned from those experiences
One disappointment was our inability to affiliate with a conservatory or music school. By not letting go of that imagination, we were able to succeed. The lesson there is simply to be patient, observant and taking up opportunity when it presents itself. One of the successes I am most proud of accomplishing before I left MHTP as ED in 2017 was initiating MHTP’s partnership with the Longy School of Music of Bard College.
See https://longy.edu/study/summer-programs/mhtp/
Another disappointment was the long-term challenge of educating healthcare institutions about therapeutic music so that it is easier for our graduates to get jobs. Doing that requires an investment in time and treasure, and it probably would take a concerted effort across the training programs. One local solution has been local groups of therapeutic musicians working together---creating local 501c3s to support their work. There are some lovely examples of this: like the MPIH in Sacramento.
Describe the outcome/manifestation of your vision; How long did it take?
20 years! Certainly MHTP is recognized as one of the most successful and respected therapeutic music training programs, and was recognized as being that quite a while ago. The MHTP Board has worked incredibly diligently to insure that MHTP maintains and exceeds that standard. MHTP’s curriculum, student and graduate support surpasses the Standards set by the NSBTM. So that part of my vision has been fulfilled. We are all still working on the second part: therapeutic musicians being recognized as an essential part of patient care in healthcare. My vision that MHTP would train musicians other than harpists has definitely come into reality, as more than half of our graduates do not play the harp.
How has the process affected you personally? Would you do it again?
Yes, I would do it again! Being involved in therapeutic music, MHTP and the creation of the NSBTM has been an incredible learning experience for me on many, many levels. Because of my involvement, I have developed some personal expertise in realms I never even imagined doing in say, 1996. From organizational skills, to running a 501c3 organization, to teaching and nurturing musicians at every level of expertise and on many different instruments including singers to become fine therapeutic musicians.
Additional comments?
To fulfill the second part of my vision, I hope that there will be a new generation of therapeutic musicians willing to do the work to take our profession to the next professional level. We created the NSBTM to set the Standards for the profession, accredit training programs that meet the Standards, be a liaison with the American Music Therapy Association and support the profession. The next possible professional step is to create a 501c3 organization that would create and administer an exam to Board-Certify Therapeutic Musicians. This could also create one title that would unite the graduates of the different programs. It could be BC-ThMus.