Tuesday 17 th May 2016

Transcription

1 Tuesday 17 th May 2016 Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy Centre 2 Lissenden Gardens, London NW5 1PQ Editors: Neta Spiro, Camilla Farrant, Giorgos Tsiris, Charlotte Cripps & Katie Rose Sanfilippo In collaboration with conferences@nordoff-robbins.org.uk

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3 The 3rd Nordoff Robbins Plus Research Conference Exploring music in therapeutic and community settings 17 th May 2016, Nordoff Robbins London Centre, United Kingdom The 3 rd Nordoff Robbins Plus Research Conference is a collaboration between Nordoff Robbins Research Department and Goldsmiths University. Conference committee members: Neta Spiro, Giorgos Tsiris, Camilla Farrant, Charlotte Cripps & Katie Rose Sanfilippo Copyright Nordoff Robbins All Rights Reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced without written consent from the Nordoff Robbins research team. Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 3.0 Unported Nordoff Robbins Research Department 2 Lissenden Gardens, NW5 1PQ, London, United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) research@nordoff-robbins.org.uk Web: Suggested citation: Spiro, N., Farrant, C., Tsiris, G., Cripps, C., & Sanfilippo, K. R. (Eds.). (2016). Exploring music in therapeutic and community settings (The 3 rd Nordoff Robbins Plus Research Conference, 17 th May 2016). London: Nordoff Robbins.

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5 TIMETABLE 3 WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONS A note by Julie Whelan, CEO of Nordoff Robbins 7 The Nordoff Robbins Plus Research Conference Series 8 Introduction to Nordoff Robbins Research 9 Introduction to the Conference 10 ABSTRACTS SPEAKER 1 'I'm on the radio! : The music of children with cancer (Nicky O Neill) 13 SPEAKER 2 Sounds within reach: Cognitive and motor rehabilitation through music making (Lauren Stewart) 14 SPEAKER 3 Closed sessions and open gigs: Music therapy within a school community (Esma Perkins) 15 SPEAKER 4 Researching practice, practising research: Exploring music therapy with children, parents, and therapists (Claire Flower) 16 SPEAKER 5 Teenagers with cancer, teenagers with music (Jimmy Lyons) 17 SPEAKER 6 Analysing communication in music making: Ethnography and observation (Nikki Moran) 18 POSTER PRESENTATIONS THEME A: Evaluation, education and professionalisation [Posters 1-4] POSTER 1 Learning together: An investigation into the potential of interprofessional education within music therapy (Jenny Laahs) 23 POSTER 2 Music therapy in mainstream education: Service evaluations from London-based primary schools (Camilla Farrant, Dejan Cacija, Eleanor Walker & Gillian O Dempsey) 24 1

6 POSTER 3 Evaluating social and musical outcomes of music lessons in children with low-functioning autistic spectrum disorder (Christopher Blake & Pamela Heaton) 26 POSTER 4 Mapping the profile of music therapists in the UK (Catherine Carr, Giorgos Tsiris, Muriel Swijghuisen Reigersberg & Grace Watts) 27 THEME B: Stroke and dementia [Posters 5-6] POSTER 5 Motivating stroke rehabilitation through music: A feasibility study using digital musical instruments in the home (Pedro Kirk, Michael Griersonm, Rebeka Bodak & Lauren Stewart) 31 POSTER 6 Investigating autobiographical memory recall in dementia and healthy older adults following exposure to familiar popular music (Renee Schapiro, Denise Evert & Daniel Müllensiefen) 33 THEME C: Music improvisation [Posters 7-9] POSTER 7 Creating together: How improvisation in music affects social bonding (Katie Rose Sanfilippo) 37 POSTER 8 The role of music improvisation intervention in cross-cultural teenage cancer recovery program (Suzie Hsieh) 38 POSTER 9 Musical improvisation as a tool for developing empathic capacity in children: An overview of current research (Camilla Farrant) 39 LIST OF DELEGATES 41 NOTES 45 2

7 9:00-9:15 Coffee and registration 9:15-9:30 Welcome 9:30-10:00 I'm on the radio! : The music of children with cancer Nicky O Neill, Nordoff Robbins 10:00-11:00 Sounds within reach: Cognitive and motor rehabilitation through music making Prof. Lauren Stewart, Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK; Centre for Music in the Brain, Dept. of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University & The Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/Aalborg, Denmark 11:00-11:15 Coffee break 11:15-11:45 Closed sessions and open gigs: Music therapy within a school community Esma Perkins, Nordoff Robbins 11:45-12:25 Researching practice, practising research: Exploring music therapy with children, parents, and therapists Claire Flower, Cheyne Child Development Service, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London; Nordoff Robbins 12:25-12:55 Teenagers with cancer, teenagers with music Jimmy Lyons, Nordoff Robbins 12:55-14:15 Lunch and poster session :00 Analysing communication in music making: Ethnography and observation Dr Nikki Moran, Institute for Music in Human and Social Development (IMHSD), Reid School of Music, University of Edinburgh 15:00-15:15 What have we learned and what s left to do? Dr Simon Procter, Nordoff Robbins 15:15-16:00 Small group discussion: Questions, methods and approaches 16:00-16:30 Discussion feedback 16:30-16:45 Announcement: a new book A Matrix for Community Music Therapy Practice Dr Stuart Wood, Barchester Healthcare & Guildhall School of Music and Drama 16:45-17:00 Close 3

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11 A very warm welcome to the Nordoff Robbins Plus Conference 2016 on behalf of the Nordoff Robbins trustees and colleagues. Nordoff Robbins is the largest independent music therapy charity in the UK, dedicated to changing the lives of vulnerable and isolated people. In the hands of a trained practitioner, music therapy can be used to support people living with a wide range of needs. It can help a child with autism to communicate, unlock forgotten memories for those living with dementia or provide comfort for someone facing a terminal illness. With our sister organisation Nordoff Robbins Scotland, our goal is to bring music s life-changing power to as many children and adults in the UK as possible, through the delivery of music therapy services, the training of skilled practitioners, and research to demonstrate and enrich our work. We support thousands of people through our own centres and by working in partnership with a wide range of organisations including care homes, schools and hospitals. This conference, in collaboration with Goldsmiths, University of London, highlights Nordoff Robbins commitment to engaging in collaborative dialogues across sectors, academic disciplines and research institutions. We hope that this event in the Nordoff Robbins Plus series will broaden, test and enrich the work that we do throughout the UK. Julie Whelan CEO of Nordoff Robbins 7

12 After the success of previous Nordoff Robbins Plus research conferences in 2013 and 2015, the series continues to grow through collaborations with a range of partner institutions. Nordoff Robbins Nordoff Robbins music therapists have worked in health, education, social care and community settings for over fifty years. Our research, Masters and PhD programmes attend closely to crossdisciplinary knowledge and seek out opportunities for inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration. Plus The Nordoff Robbins Plus conference series this year sharing the platform with Goldsmiths, University of London aims to provide forums for multi-disciplinary and cross-institutional thinking. It brings together leading researchers and practitioners in creative conversations that question traditional assumptions, and venture beyond familiar knowledge and methods. 8

13 Music therapy is an interactive, varied and growing practice. It raises pressing questions such as what happens in music therapy and why, as well as how it is viewed by people who engage with it in different ways, and what the effects of music therapy are seen to be. The work of the research team at Nordoff Robbins explores these areas and therefore is informed and directed by the daily work with clients, their families and carers, as well as previous research in music therapy and related fields. In these ways we hope to contribute to Nordoff Robbins music therapy practice and to the music therapy community more broadly. Along the way, we hope that some of our research will contribute to other areas, including music in health, music psychology and music sociology. Research is intrinsic to the work of the charity s music services. Indeed, research is integral to Nordoff Robbins practice and has been since the founders of the approach, Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins, began their pioneering work. The Nordoff Robbins research team was formally established in 2000 and an injection of funds from the Board of Trustees in 2006 helped Nordoff Robbins Research to grow to its present configuration. The Nordoff Robbins research and education teams instituted the UK s first MPhil / PhD programmes in Music Therapy and Music, Health, Society. Current research projects are clustered in three themes: Musical interaction and improvisation, music therapy tools and views, overviews and understanding. Nordoff Robbins research provides information for practitioners, and we carry out service evaluations of Nordoff Robbins work throughout the UK. More information can be found online at: 9

14 Welcome to the third research conference in the Nordoff Robbins Plus series. Nordoff Robbins is delighted to bring together leading researchers and practitioners to consider, discuss and debate music in therapeutic and community settings. Music can be many things to many people: entertainment, a route to social bonding, a focus for testing, a mood modulator, a motivator, a therapy. While celebrating its multiple roles and functions in our lives, this conference revisits the kinds of questions that need to be asked, and methods used when seeking to describe, understand, test and communicate about the roles and effects of music and music therapy in people s lives. Our keynote speaker is Lauren Stewart who is Professor in Psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London, where she leads a research group and the MSc programme in Music, Mind and Brain. She is joined by speakers with a range of backgrounds: Dr Nikki Moran, Senior Lecturer and Programme Director of Music - MA (Hons) at Edinburgh University, and Claire Flower, from the Cheyne Child Development Service, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and a PhD student at Nordoff Robbins. Three Nordoff Robbins music therapists Jimmy Lyons, Nicky O Neill and Esma Perkins will be talking about their music therapy work in different contexts. We also have posters that are grouped in 3 themes: Evaluation, education and professionalisation; Stroke and dementia; and Music improvisation. The conference is organised by the Nordoff Robbins research team in collaboration with Goldsmiths, University of London. In the spirit of the Nordoff Robbins Plus series, we have brought together speakers from adjoining disciplines, together with poster presentations and group discussions. In so doing we celebrate multi-disciplinary perspectives and invite you to participate in discussions and debates. The research team would like to thank Reena Begum, Elizabeth Charlesworth, Sarah Cosby, Harriet Crawford, Mark Frodsham, Laura Hattemore, Eirini Kotzaki, Kalvin Nicholson, Daisy Powell, Tanya Mehmet, Steve Scott and our CEO Julie Whelan for their help in preparing this conference. I hope you enjoy your time here. Dr Neta Spiro Conference Chair 10

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17 Nordoff Robbins Abstract The professional infrastructure within the specialist paediatric hospital setting presents a myriad of professional relationships that the music therapist could potentially work with. The presentation describes the setting and the way that the therapist navigates the various teams and referral entry points as well as the on-going working relationships. Clinical decisions concerning referral, delivery and feedback often demand immediate response in a setting where the pace is fast and urgent. Video and audio case examples of music therapy work will be used to illustrate the above description and challenges for the therapist within the hospital setting. Biography Nicky O Neill graduated from Nordoff-Robbins London in 1990, obtaining a Diploma in Music Therapy. In 2002 she upgraded to a master s degree in music therapy, in which she focused on one of her areas of speciality, which is working with children in an acute medical setting. Her clinical experience covers a wide age range of people within a variety of settings including acute hospitals, educational and community venues. From she was a group-work tutor on the Nordoff Robbins Master of Music Therapy training programme. She joined the Greenwich Community Health Services Music Therapy Department in 1999, for whom she specialises in working with children with complex needs. Nicky also lectures on other music therapy training courses in the UK, as well as presenting regularly at music therapy and other health related conferences. 13

18 Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK; Centre for Music in the Brain, Dept. of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University & The Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/Aalborg, Denmark Abstract Stroke is a leading cause of adult disability, disproportionately affecting people from poorer backgrounds. Stroke survivors often have limited access to rehabilitation after discharge from hospital, leaving them to self-regulate their recovery. Previous research has indicated that several musical approaches can be used effectively in stroke rehabilitation (Altenmüller et al., 2009; Schneider et al., 2007). The use of digital-music interfaces, as opposed to traditional musical instruments, gives greater versatility and the opportunity to use machine learning approaches that tailor the protocol to an individual s specific goals and improvement trajectory. I will first present a study of active music making in patients with chronic neglect. In this study, patients received an intervention involving the playing of scales and simple melodies on a xylophone (non-digital), where spacing of the xylophone bars was increased as the patients ability to reach into the neglected side of space improved. Performance on clinical tests of visuospatial processing revealed significant improvement, in a clinically relevant range. I will also present data from an in-progress study with hemiparetic stroke patients, who received an intervention focussed on entraining to the beat of selfchosen music via digital music blocks, which triggered percussion sounds. Significant improvements were seen on measures of physical impairment, with some additional improvements made to tasks of daily living. Theories of sensorimotor coupling and reward-based learning will be considered to explain the results and a discussion will be framed around the potential of digital technologies for brain injured patients. Biography Lauren Stewart is Professor in Psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London, where she leads a research group and MSc programme in Music, Mind and Brain. Lauren s research concerns the psychological and neuroscientific basis of musical behaviour and she has published 70+ peer reviewed articles on topics including learning and plasticity, congenital amusia, melodic expectations, and tone-colour synaesthesia. Her funding includes awards from the ESRC, Leverhulme. 14

19 Abstract Nordoff Robbins The presentation explores the role of music therapy at Wargrave House School, a specialist school and college for children and young adults on the autistic spectrum. A case study of the music therapist s work with one individual, beginning with closed sessions and following on to the school s Battle of the Bands open gig, demonstrates the sequential affordances of the individual s music therapy as it evolves to encompass a number of different ways of making music. The presentation suggests that the introduction of a culture of every-day music making within the school, alongside music therapy as traditionally understood, has a far reaching therapeutic benefit for the whole school community. Biography Esma Perkins grew up in London where she attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama throughout her school years. After studying Music at York University she then went on complete a Masters in Music Therapy, Music, Health and Society at Nordoff Robbins, Manchester (July 2013). Since September 2013 she has worked for Nordoff Robbins North West and continues to be amazed by music s potential to reach people in such a variety of different ways. She currently works as a Facilitative Music Therapist, including one day at a specialist residential school for pupils on the Autistic Spectrum and another in a special education school. 15

20 Cheyne Child Development Service, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London; Nordoff Robbins. Abstract Music therapy practice with children and their parents has emerged as a growing area of interest within the profession in recent years. Developing practice in this area brings an imperative to address emerging questions about that practice: how does the child, parent, therapist trio work, who does what to make the trio happen, and how might it be experienced by those within it? This paper outlines a qualitative research project within an NHS Child Development Service in which the researcher is also a practitioner. A preliminary study investigated a single music therapy trio in depth, seeking to retain a focus on everyday practice through combined research methods. The study suggested the trio to be a dynamic, fluid, network, emerging between people, places and events both within and beyond the music therapy room. Tracing the complexities of situated music therapy practice with children and parents within the broader NHS context forms the basis of the current study, creating further methodological demands. The practice-led nature of this study has raised particular questions: What are the implications of being both researcher and practitioner? What questions might we want to ask of practice? Who might want to know what, and how can we develop ways of asking and answering those questions? This paper sets out to explore these questions and more in an exploration of the dynamic tensions between practice and research. Biography Claire Flower has worked as a music therapist for over twenty five years, the last ten years of which have been within the Cheyne Child Development Service at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London. She is particularly interested in working with children and parents, and is currently engaged in doctoral research in this area at Nordoff Robbins. 16

21 Nordoff Robbins; Teenage Cancer Trust, University College London Hospital Abstract Teenagers are on the threshold of adulthood, transitioning from childhood physically, mentally and emotionally. During this complex developmental period a cancer diagnosis has an enormous impact on the young person and their family. As part of a multi-disciplinary approach in this context, music therapy can have a wide ranging impact on patients, their families and staff with its capacity to accompany patients during their treatment and its potential to enable patients to experience themselves as teenagers first and cancer patients second. Music therapy is flexibly delivered on the teenage in-patient ward and outpatient treatment centre to provide emotional support to patients and their families, and also to help positively affect the working atmosphere for staff. A number of examples of the range of music therapy interventions being delivered will be presented here, which aim to demonstrate the different experiences that music therapy can provide for this community of teenagers with cancer. Biography Jimmy Lyons plays guitar, bass guitar and piano. Having grown up in Cork, Ireland playing in various bands and working in music, he completed a master s degree in music technology in Shortly after which, he moved to the UK where he began teaching children with autism and developed an interest in the possibilities of music therapy. After qualifying from the MMT training at Nordoff Robbins, London in 2013, Jimmy has worked in a variety of settings for Nordoff Robbins. His work includes the establishment of music therapy services with the Teenage Cancer Trust at University College London Hospital. He also works at a music therapy centre, a nursery school and an alternative provision secondary school. Jimmy enjoys working with the diverse populations that he meets during the week, and is a firm believer in the power of music to enhance wellbeing and affect change. 17

22 Institute for Music in Human and Social Development (IMHSD), Reid School of Music, University of Edinburgh, UK Abstract In this presentation I will discuss some recent and current research projects involving different situations of music performance, including North Indian classical musician duos, jazz and free improviser duos, and small chamber ensembles. Each of these studies, which include my own and also current student projects, have set out primarily to examine some dimension of musical communication. Each project asks different questions about musical performance, and each has sought to contextualise the explanations through different disciplinary frameworks, including ethnomusicology, psychology, and sports science. The aim of this presentation is to give an overview of a range of methods, technologies and dialogues that contribute to the landscape of academic music research. Biography Nikki Moran is Senior Lecturer and Programme Director of Music - MA (Hons) at the Reid School of Music, University of Edinburgh, UK. Her research interests and projects are based on the relationship between musical performance and everyday social interaction. She specialises in the study of musicians communicative behaviour, using methods drawn from both music psychology (video observation and analysis) and ethnomusicology (participant-observation and ethnography). 18

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27 Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh; Nordoff Robbins, Scotland Background: While the literature acknowledges benefits to professional collaboration between music therapists and other professions, there has been little discussion regarding how therapists acquire the skills required for these collaborations. In a wider healthcare context, interprofessional education is utilised to facilitate such collaborations. This study considers peer clinical work review sessions as a potential interdisciplinary training tool within a UK arts therapy training context, from a music therapy perspective. Aims: The study aims to model the experience of participating in interdisciplinary peer review between music therapy and dance movement psychotherapy students, and evaluate the potential of this process as a means of introducing interprofessional education to arts therapies training courses. Methods: Clips of video recordings, taken across a course of music therapy delivered by the researcher, were shared in peer review sessions. Sessions were held separately with a music therapy student peer and a dance movement psychotherapy student peer. Audio recordings of these sessions were transcribed, and thematic analyses of the transcripts compared. Results: While both courses of peer review were experienced as valuable additions to the training experience, several additional themes arose from interdisciplinary peer review sessions which were not experienced during intradisciplinary peer review. These additional themes included developing peer support, widening perspectives of other professions and developing cross-disciplinary communication skills. Conclusions: Interdisciplinary peer review holds potential as a means of introducing interprofessional education into arts therapy training. These results provide a framework upon which further investigation and development of such interdisciplinary inputs within the UK training context could be based. Biography Jenny Laahs completed her MSc in Music Therapy (Nordoff Robbins) at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh in This study has been adapted from her final dissertation. Her first music therapy project after qualifying was a six week skill-sharing project in Tbilisi, Georgia, with Music as Therapy International. Jenny now works for Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy in Scotland with a variety of client groups. 23

28 1 Nordoff Robbins; 2 Cambridge University; 3 Barchester Healthcare; 4 Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh Background: Music therapy is a recognised intervention in healthcare settings and special needs schools (HEFCE, 2001). Despite the increasing numbers of children with Special Educational Needs entering mainstream education (Wormald, 2015), it is not commonplace to have music therapists working in mainstream education. Schools are increasingly aware of the impact that psychological welfare can have on the educational achievement of children, particularly those who have an unsettled home environment, or who are in care (Lindsay, 2007). SEN pupils account for 67% of pupils expelled from school, although they comprise only 17% of the school population (Leslie & Skidmore, 2007); they are shown to be at an increased risk of bullying (Fink et al., 2015). The Music Therapy Tree is a provider of music therapy to children in mainstream schools based in London. Aims and methods: We aim to explore how music therapy is perceived to influence children s wellbeing in seven mainstream schools. We have conducted service evaluations at seven schools over a period of two years, presented here as a composite report. The evaluations draw together perspectives of head teachers, Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs), class teachers, Learning Support Assistants, music therapists and the children themselves. Evaluation material was collected through questionnaires developed by the MTT team and uses the approach to service evaluation proposed by Tsiris et al. (2014). Results: The report includes data from five head teachers, twenty-four classroom teachers, six music therapists and thirty-two children, presented as numeric data and as themed quotations from the 67 participants. Conclusion: We suggest the ways in which music therapists may support children within the mainstream sector; for example, increasing happiness, supporting emotional regulation, selfconfidence, social interaction and empathy, creativity and imagination, and communication skills. References: Fink, E., Deighton, J., Humphrey, N., & Wolpert, M. (2015). Assessing the bullying and victimisation experiences of children with special educational needs in mainstream schools: Development and validation of the Bullying Behaviour and Experience Scale. Research in developmental disabilities, 36, Higher Education Funding Council for England (2001). Promoting research in nursing and the allied health professions. London: HEFCE Research report 01/64. Retrieved from Leslie, C., & Skidmore, C. (2007). SEN: The Truth about Inclusion. The Bow Group. 24

29 Lindsay, G. (2007). Educational psychology and the effectiveness of inclusive education/mainstreaming. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 77, Tsiris, G., Pavlicevic, M., & Farrant, C. (2014). A Guide to Evaluation for Arts Therapists and Arts & Health Practitioners. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Wormald, C. (2015). Department for Education mid-year report to Parliament, January Biographies The Music Therapy Tree is an organisation that specialises in the provision of music therapy to vulnerable children in mainstream education. Camilla Farrant trained at Nordoff Robbins London, is Head Music Therapist of the Music Therapy Tree and is a Researcher at Nordoff Robbins, London and Research Assistant at Cambridge University. She is embarking upon her doctoral study in processes of dyadic musical improvisation at Christ s College, Cambridge in October Dejan Cacija trained at Nordoff Robbins London, and has worked with children with emotional difficulties since leading a project in Croatia for children with war trauma. He also works for Barchester Healthcare with people with neurological conditions and dementia. He is also a jazz pianist, composing for short films. Ellie Walker trained at Nordoff Robbins London and has worked with children with a variety of conditions and difficulties in healthcare settings, as well as special and mainstream education. She works at Nordoff Robbins, London and is a singer-song writer. Gill O Dempsey trained at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. Her experience includes working in an NHS CAMHS service in Scotland and an NHS Child Development Service in London. She is a Trustee and Area Liaison Officer of the British Association for Music Therapy. 25

30 Goldsmiths, University of London Background: Quantitative evidence supporting the efficacy of musical interactions with people with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in educational or therapeutic settings is weak. Problems include the heterogeneous presentation of ASD and insufficient definition of musical interactions. The aim of this study was to test a new research model, applying a tightly defined musical treatment to a single specific deficit. Three core deficits in ASD were chosen: response to a bid for attention, response to a bid for joint attention and turn-taking. Aims and methods: In a five lesson treatment, within subjects design, twelve children with lowfunctioning ASD (LFASD) received 5 music lessons, which were preceded and followed by nonmusical toy-play sessions. Embedded in each of the sessions were tests for the three deficits. Tests in the non-musical condition used interactions from the Autistic Diagnostic Observation Schedule 2 (ADOS2). In the musical condition, the interactions were tested using tightly defined matched musical versions of the ADOS2 tests. Coding of resulting behaviour was also modelled on ADOS2. Results: Children with LFASD and no speech were found to respond significantly more to a bid for attention when their name was sung rather than called. A significant quadratic trend in the behaviours of all the children suggested that a musical joint attention bid may be more successful than a non-musical one. Turn-taking was not demonstrated to be affected by condition. Conclusion: Results show significant changes in two interactions, described above. This encourages us that the research model may be useful for measuring the effectiveness of specific musical interactions. Further studies with larger sample sizes are required. Further studies with larger sample sizes are required. Biographies Ex-Principal Horn player of the Ulster Orchestra and professional pianist, Christopher Blake has focused on developing 1:1 music lessons for children with Severe Learning Difficulties since Realising the importance of research in furthering musical opportunities for this population, he undertook a Masters degree in ASD at Belfast as well as the Music, Mind and Brain MSc at Goldsmiths. He now divides his time between working in two special schools and studying for his MPhil/PhD under Prof. Pamela Heaton. Pamela Heaton is a Professor of Psychology Goldsmiths, University of London. She is an expert on perception and cognition in autism and has published her research findings in many high-impact peer reviewed journals. She has a special interest in musical skills in autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. In 2002, she was awarded the British Psychological Society prize for outstanding doctoral research contributions to Psychology for her thesis on music and autism. She is frequently invited to speak at conferences and research events. Her most recent talks have taken place at the Max Plank Institute in Leipzig, the Royal Society in London and Music and Neurosciences conferences in Montreal and Santa Fe. She actively collaborates with researchers in the UK, Europe and North America and her research has been funded by the EU, the ESRC and the Baily Thomas Charitable Trust. 26

31 1 Queen Mary University, 2 Guildhall School of Music and Drama, 3 Nordoff Robbins, London, 4 Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 5 Goldsmiths, University of London; 6 Cheyne Child Development Service, Chelsea Background: What is the current profile of music therapists working in the UK? What does the UK music therapy workforce look like in terms of employment characteristics across regions, settings and client groups? In an attempt to explore such questions, the British Association for Music Therapy (BAMT), in collaboration with Goldsmiths, University of London, commissioned a national survey of its membership. Aims and methods: The aim of this survey was to provide an initial mapping of the BAMT membership in terms of its employment, training and cultural profile. With a total of 374 respondents (44% response rate), the survey outcomes provide an overview of music therapists sociodemographic composition, employment and income, as well as their work in relation to different settings, ages and client groups. The outcomes also give information regarding fee setting in private practice, while details regarding sector-, funding- and contract-specific information is given. Conclusions: Contributing to the understanding of the current profile of the UK music therapy workforce, this study can serve as a springboard for further questions and strategic development of the profession. Survey outcomes can help individual practitioners as well as organisations to make more informed decisions regarding future developments of music therapy services across the country. Biographies Dr Catherine Carr is a clinical lecturer and music therapist at Queen Mary University and East London NHS Foundation Trust, lecturer and supervisor for the MA in Music Therapy at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and associate editor of the open access journal Approaches: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Music Therapy. Previously a Trustee of BAMT, she conducted a membership survey in 2007 and is currently a Governor of the Music Therapy Charity. She has been awarded two National Institute for Health Research fellowships and has expertise in a range of quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods. Giorgos Tsiris is a researcher at Nordoff Robbins, London and lecturer at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. He is the founding editor of the open access journal Approaches: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Music Therapy. Giorgos is currently conducting his doctoral research on music therapy and spirituality at Nordoff Robbins / City University London. Dr Muriel Swijghuisen Reigersberg is a visiting fellow at the Music, Mind and Brain Centre, Goldsmiths, Psychology Department. She has a doctorate in applied/ medical ethnomusicology and conducted field research in Indigenous Australia using music interventions to improve wellbeing. Her activities included organising concerts in a prison and Indigenous drugs and alcohol rehabilitation centre for which she was awarded Queensland Arts Council support. Dr Swijghuisen Reigersberg is an expert in qualitative, ethnographic anthropologically based research. 27

32 Grace Watts works for the British Association for Music Therapy as their PR Officer and worked closely with Dr Catherine Carr and Giorgos Tsiris on developing the BAMT membership survey. As a music therapist, she has worked within educational settings and the NHS. Grace is a practitioner in the music therapy team at the Cheyne Child Development Service, based at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Recently she has been involved in delivering music therapy as part of the TIME-A trial. 28

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35 1 Goldsmiths, University of London; 2 Aarhus University, Denmark Background: Digital approaches to physical rehabilitation are becoming increasingly common and embedding these new technologies within a musical framework may be particularly motivating for people recovering from strokes. Stroke survivors often have limited access to rehabilitation after discharge from hospital, leaving them to self-regulate their recovery (Ashley, 2013). Previous research has indicated that several musical approaches can be used effectively in stroke rehabilitation (Altenmüller et al., 2009; Schneider et al., 2007). Aims: The current feasibility study aimed to test if digital musical instruments (DMIs) could aid in the self-management of stroke rehabilitation in the home, focusing on seated forward reach movements of the upper limb. Methods: Participants (n=3), all at least 11 months post stroke, participated in 15 researcher-led music making sessions over a 5 week intervention period. The sessions involved them drumming to the beat of self-chosen tunes using bespoke digital drum pads that were synced wirelessly to an ipad App and which triggered percussion sounds as feedback. They were encouraged to continue these exercises when the researcher was not present. Results: All physical impairment measures indicated improvement during the intervention phase. These improvements were retained or progressed further during the post intervention phase. The results showed significant levels of self-management and significant increases in functional measures with some evidence for transfer into tasks of daily living. Conclusions: The current feasibility study suggests that DMIs can provide a valuable tool for the selfmanagement of rehabilitation, providing motivational aids for long-term exercise. References: Altenmüller, E., Marco-Pallares, J., Münte, T. F., & Schneider, S. (2009). Neural reorganization underlies improvement in stroke-induced motor dysfunction by music-supported therapy. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1169(1), Ashley, J. (2013). Caring for my stroke victim husband Andrew Marr changed my life. The Guardian. Retrieved from Schneider, S., Schönle, P. W., Altenmüller, E., & Münte, T. F. (2007). Using musical instruments to improve motor skill recovery following a stroke. Journal of Neurology, 254(10),

36 Biographies Pedro Kirk is just starting a PhD in psychology at Goldsmiths and has recently completed the MSc in Music Mind and Brain, achieving a distinction. He has worked within a highly interdisciplinary group between the Psychology and Computing departments at Goldsmiths, developing and evaluating musical interventions for stroke rehabilitation. The project received international recognition by being awarded first prize in the student research competition at the CHI 2015 human computer interaction conference in Seoul, Korea. Mick Grierson is a Reader in Computing at Goldsmiths, University of London. He works in creative technologies research, developing new software and hardware for sound, music, graphics and interaction. He has a special interest in working with disabled communities at a local and national level. He often works with the Deptfordbased music charity, Heart n Soul, and developed 6 interactive installations for the Paralympics 2012 as part of their "Dean Rodney Singers" Project. Rebeka Bodak completed a Bachelor of Arts in music (2001), followed by a Graduate Diploma in Music Therapy (2003) at The University of Queensland, Australia. She then moved on to complete her MSc in Music, Mind and Brain at Goldsmiths, University of London in She has been very fortunate to develop her clinical, teaching and research skills in neurorehabilitation, disorders of consciousness, and Huntington s disease both in Australia ( ) and in the UK ( ). Rebeka has been awarded a PhD Mobility Fellowship from Aarhus University in Denmark. She will explore audio-motor coupling and its applications under the supervision of Lauren Stewart in London (Music, Mind and Brain at Goldsmiths) and Peter Vuust in Denmark (Music in the Brain Aarhus). Lauren Stewart is Professor in Psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London, where she leads a research group and MSc programme in Music, Mind and Brain. Lauren s research concerns the psychological and neuroscientific basis of musical behaviour and she has published 70+ peer reviewed articles on topics including learning and plasticity, congenital amusia, melodic expectations, and tone-colour synaesthesia. She was recently appointed co-director of major new research centre, Music in the Brain centre based at Aarhus University, Denmark. 32

37 1 Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY; 2 Goldsmiths, University of London Background: Autobiographical memory (ABM) greatly contributes to an individual s sense of identity, yet significantly deteriorates as dementia progresses. Previous research has found that music facilitates ABM recall in patients with dementia. Aims: While past studies often used non-lyrical classical music (e.g. Vivaldi s Four Seasons: Foster & Valentine, 2001; García et al., 2012; Irish et al., 2006) and/or self-selected music (El Haj et al., 2012), the present study utilized familiar popular music from two time periods in participants lives. Method: Fourteen dementia patients and twenty-five healthy older adults selected one familiar happy and one familiar sad song from a list of popular tunes from either their adolescence or adulthood. Participants were presented with happy music, sad music and silence before completing a 27-item autobiographical memory questionnaire (Foster & Valentine, 2001; García et al., 2012). To assess the impact of the music on the participants moods, they completed the Positive Affect Negative Affect Scale (PANAS; Watson et al., 1999) before and after being presented with approximately two minutes of music/silence. Results: Both participant groups were appropriately emotionally affected by sad and happy music, though the change in positive affect was strongest for music from their adolescence. Contrary to previous research, music did not significantly benefit ABM recall as compared to silence for either participant group. Conclusions: It is possible that music-induced memory recall improvements found in other studies are driven by arousal levels and/or personal saliency over familiarity. These results hold significant implications for the clinical use of music. Biographies Renee Schapiro holds a B.A. in Psychology from Skidmore College and is currently pursuing her M.Sc. in Music, Mind and Brain at Goldsmiths University. Renee spent last summer as a research volunteer at the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function in Bronx, NY under the supervision of renowned music therapist Dr Concetta Tomaino. Denise Evert is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY. Her research interests include hemispheric specialization for selective attentional and emotional processing, the influence of unattended information on the processing of attended information, spatial attention and global/local processing, and the effects of music on autobiographical memory in Alzheimer's patients. 33

38 Daniel Müllensiefen is a Reader in Psychology and director of the MSc in Music, Mind and Brain at Goldsmiths, University of London. His research interests include individual differences in musical ability, computational models of music perception and cognition, musical imagery and the effects of music in advertising. 34

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41 Goldsmiths, University of London; Nordoff Robbins Background: One function of music is its ability to create social bonds and communities. Researchers have attributed this effect to synchronization in music. This study is the first to investigate whether creative freedom and improvisation can create a stronger social bonding effect than that already found when people synchronize. Aims and methods: A 2 X 3 mixed design was used, in which 33 participants (23 female) were placed in 1 of 3 conditions: complete synchrony with no improvisation or complexity (unison); partial synchrony and complexity with no improvisation (4-part harmony); and partial synchrony, complexity and improvisation (improvisation). A self-repost questionnaire and a pre/post pain threshold test (PTT) were used to measure social bonding. Linear mixed effects modeling was used along with the Jonckheere-Terpstra trend test to indicate that improvisation does seem to have an effect on social bonding. Conclusion: These outcomes contribute to a better understanding of the beneficial effects and evolutionary purpose of music. Biography Katie Rose Sanfilippo is a current psychology PhD student at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her current research investigates the potential of a musical intervention in helping anxious and depressed pregnant women. She is also a current research assistant at Nordoff Robbins. She recently completed her masters in Music, Mind and Brain at Goldsmiths. She is originally from California, where she received a BA in vocal performance and choral conducting along with another BA in general psychology. 37

42 UCL Institute of Education, London; Taiwanese Department of Education Background: The role of music has been reported to be significant for pain management within the music therapy literature. Increasing numbers of people have been supplementing cancer health care with complementary music therapy in countries such as Taiwan and the UK. The types of complementary therapies used in cancer care recovery programs have included music making interventions, such as musical improvisation. Aims and methods: The purpose of this study was to investigate patients perceptions of and satisfaction with a hospice music improvisation intervention, from a cross-cultural health and socialcultural perspective. 66 individuals took part in the study, from British and Taiwanese cancer health centers. Musical improvisation was used as therapeutic tool and semi-structured interviews took place. Comparative critical analysis was applied as a theoretical and methodological framework for the analysis of these interviews. Results: The preliminary report found similarities and differences in themes relating to cancer care programs, such as increased group social interactions, improved self-belief, stress relief as well as body and mind empowerment. Conclusion: Our research highlights potential benefits relating to musical improvisation as a therapeutic tool for cancer aftercare recovery programs. This is particularly useful for social-cultural and cross-cultural applied health psychology research. Biography Dr Suzie Hsieh is the CEO and co-founder of the CST research centre in Taipei, Taiwan. She obtained her PhD from UCL Institute of Education in London. She has worked for Gaoxiong City orchestra, the international youth orchestra and has done consultancy work for national music education institutions in Taiwan. Dr Hsieh also collaborates with the Taiwanese Department of Education and other universities on music psychology and music education issues. Her research relates mainly to music therapy, music psychology and international music education. 38

43 Cambridge University; Nordoff Robbins; Music Therapy Tree Background: In recent years, the role of emotion in musical interaction has garnered significant research attention (Juslin & Sloboda, 2010), in particular, exploration of the role of empathy (understanding the emotional state of others) in musical interaction. Within the field of music psychology, it has been suggested that when two or more people interact musically, the attention of the players is on the other person s actions and intentions, and they mutually enter into states of togetherness (Cross, 2009; Huron, 2001). Musical interaction could facilitate a heightened awareness of the emotional state of others, i.e. empathy (Cross et al., 2013; Rabinowitch et al, 2013). Musical improvisation may offer more scope for adaptation in musical improvisations between two players than in pre-composed musical interactions. Aims and method: To review research literature that supports the theory that co-active musical improvisation may influence a person s capacity for empathy. Papers have been included from across the disciplines of music education, music psychology and music therapy. Literature review: Entrainment has been observed to have a measurable effect on affiliation, prosociality and empathic behaviours (Hove & Risen 2009; Spiro et al 2013; van Baaren et al 2004). However, a few studies suggest that participatory music making may increase people s empathic capacities (Hart & DiBlasi, 2015; Hietolahtiansten & Kalliopuska, 1990; Kirschner & Tomasello, 2010; Laurence, 2005; Rabinowitch et al, 2013). Literature from the music-centred music therapy profession has suggested that there are positive social and emotional effects of musical interaction for the client, specifically in improvised contexts (Aigen, 2005/2007; Ansdell, 1995; Nordoff & Robbins, 1971/2004). Conclusions: With the exception of Rabinowitch et al. (2013), few music-empathy-related studies specifically examine which properties of a musical interaction are likely to result in an increase in participants empathy levels. In light of claims about the social-emotional effects of music education, improvisational music-centred music therapy and musical group interaction, the present review highlights an area for further study. References Aigen, K. (2005). Music-Centered Music Therapy. Gilsum, NH: Barcelona Publishers. Aigen, K. (2007b). Qualitative Research at the Nordoff-Robbins Centre for Music Therapy at New York University. NYU-NRMT website. Retrieved January Ansdell, G. (1995). Music for Life: Aspects of Creative Music Therapy with Adult Clients. London: Jessica Kingsley. Cross, I. (2009). The evolutionary nature of musical meaning. Musicae scientiae, 13(2 suppl.),

44 Cross, I., Laurence, F., & Rabinowitch, T.-C. (2013). Empathic creativity in musical group practices. In G. McPherson & G. Welch (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Music Education. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hart, E., & Di Blasi, Z. (2013). Combined flow in musical jam sessions: A pilot qualitative study. Psychology of Music. doi: / Hietolahtiansten, M., & Kalliopuska, M. (1990). Self-esteem and empathy among children actively involved in music. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 71, Hove, M. J., & Risen, J. L. (2009). It s all in the timing: Interpersonal synchrony increases affiliation. Social Cognition, 27(6), Huron, D. (2001). Is music an evolutionary adaptation? Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 930, Juslin, P. N., & Sloboda, J. A. (Eds.). (2010). Handbook of Music and Emotion. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Kim, J., Wigram, T., & Gold, C. (2008). The effects of improvisational music therapy on joint attention behaviors in autistic children: A randomized controlled study. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 38(9), Kirschner, S., & Tomasello, M. (2010). Joint music making promotes prosocial behavior in 4-year-old children. Evolution and Human Behavior, 31(5), Laurence, F. (2005). Music and empathy: A study of the possible development, through certain ways of musicking, of children s empathic abilities, responses, motivation and behaviour within a primary school context. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Birmingham: University of Birmingham. MacDonald, R. A. R., Wilson, G. B., & Miell, D. (2012). Improvisation as a Creative Process within Contemporary Music. In D. J. Hargreaves, D. Miell, & R. A. R. Macdonald (Eds.), Musical Imaginations: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Creativity, Performance and Perception (pp ). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Nordoff, P., & Robbins, C. (1977/2007) Creative Music Therapy. Gilsum, NH: Barcelona Publishers. Pothoulaki, M., MacDonald, R. A. R., & Flowers, P. (2012). An interpretative phenomenological analysis of an improvisational music therapy program for cancer patients. Journal of Music Therapy, 49(1), Rabinowitch, T. C., Cross, I., & Burnard, P. (2013). Long-term musical group interaction has a positive influence on empathy in children. Psychology of Music, 41(4), Spiro, N., Schofield, M., & Himberg, T. (2013). Empathy in musical interaction. Proceedings of the 3 rd International Conference on Music & Emotion (ICME3), Jyväsklä, Finland. van Baaren, R., Holland, R., Kawakami, K., & van Knippenbery, A. (2004). Mimicry and prosocial behaviour. Psychological Science 15(1), 71. Biography Camilla Farrant is a Researcher at Nordoff Robbins London and Research Assistant at Cambridge University. She trained at Nordoff Robbins London and is Head Music Therapist of the Music Therapy Tree, an organisation that specialises in providing music therapy to vulnerable children in mainstream schools. 40