The music never stopped

Henry Sawyer (Simmons) looks to bond with his estranged son, Gabriel, who suffers from a brain tumor that prevents him from forming new memories. Sensing that Gabriel responds to music, Henry seeks out a music therapist, who discovers that when Gabriel listens to the rock music he loved, he reengages with the world. Watch the trailer here..

Music Therapy Research Blog

I've just discovered a music therapy research blog (written by Blythe LaGasse, Ph.D, MT-BC) and a podcast ( available on iTunes By Andrew Knight, MA, MT-BC, NMT & Blythe LaGasse, Ph.D., MT-BC, NMT). The blog would be really useful for many of us that are about to graduate and starting working as qualified music therapists. Evidence based practice is something that will support every single job position and opportunity that we embark on. So this blog should prove very useful for keeping in touch with the most recent research that is available to our profession. ..check it out www.musictherapyresearchblog.com.

UL Graduates begin Music Therapy Ireland service

Three University of Limerick Music Therapy graduates have started up a Munster based service. Eli Chourdaki, Jack O'Leary and John Garvey have joined together to form Music Therapy Ireland. Together they offer a creative space to help the lives of people who are healthy and those with disabilities.
Their mission is to use music as a medium to promote and encourage further development and growth in a space that is creative, safe and non-judgmental. Check out www.musictherapyireland.com for information and to read their blog.

"Something Special" get National Lottery funding

Something Special, based in Eglinton County Derry, secured a grant of £422,405 to run the Achieving Something Special project which will involve a range of education and arts programmes for people of all levels of disability helping them achieve things they never thought possible.

Founder Denise White explained that she started the organisation in 2007 because there was a lack of services available for people with learning disabilities in the North West.

“Music will underpin everything we do. All teaching sessions will be focused around music and the pupils play piano or use percussion instruments. It helps them communicate and connect with other people, charges their mood and gives them the confidence and attention to learn.

“This project gives them the chance to meet friends, develop social skills, take part in courses, improve their confidence and esteem, and change the public’s attitudes to people with disabilities.”

Read the full article from the Derry Journal here...

Breaking news for music therapy in Northern Ireland

Landmark music therapy trial to be conducted in Northern Ireland

03 December 2009 Queen's University, Belfast

Queen’s University Belfast is to play a major role in the biggest trial ever conducted to investigate how music therapy can help children and young people with severe mental health problems.

Researchers from the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Queen’s will work on the landmark project with Northern Ireland Music Therapy Trust (NIMTT), a charity providing music therapy services to people with disabilities and disorders who have profound communication difficulties.

NIMTT has been awarded £326,164 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Research programme, to carry out Music in Mind - the largest study ever undertaken into the effects of music therapy on children and young people with severe mental health problems – with Queen’s.

The therapy will be trialled over a three year period on over 200 children and young people to test whether it improves their communication, self-confidence and self-esteem.

MELODY GARNOT - Music therapy discovered her...

And you owe it to your ears to discover this gem for yourself!
Sophie Bruce 2008-02-29 (GET THE FULL BBC REVIEW HERE)

This debut will inevitably draw comparisons to Norah Jones and Madeleine Peyroux – but don't fall into the trap of believing it. Because behind the sweeping classic melodies and dreamy piano lie the striking lyrics and edgy tone of Melody Garnot – and beyond them, an unbelievable story of courage against the odds. Disabled after a 4X4 knocked her off her bike at 19, Melody only found her voice while receiving music therapy as she recovered. The recordings she made in a wheelchair at her hospital bedside were eventually released in 2005 as Some Lessons – The Bedroom Sessions.

Autism: The Musical

This was on More4 at the weekend and I missed it! I hope to catch it again on sky player. For more goto the website. Heres a review from the New York Times.....

A Season of Song, Dance and Autism

By HUGH HART

Published: March 23, 2008

ON a recent afternoon Elaine Hall, a petite acting coach, sat on the floor of the bare-bones rec room at Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services and guided a half-dozen kids with autism through a finger-pointing, call-and-response game called Zip Zap. Then came a group singalong as the children crooned "Our circle is ready to start/Come share ideas, come share your heart" over and over. Before long Josh, Zoey, Shira and their friends were bunny-hopping across the room and improvising wild solo jigs to giddy applause.

This is the Miracle Project, subject of the documentary "Autism: The Musical," which has its debut Tuesday on HBO. It chronicles the 2005-6 incarnation of Ms. Hall's program by tracking a rambunctious cast of children with autism — and their parents — as they prepare to put on a show.