There are many ways in which music therapy can play an important role in improving kids’ wellbeing. Remarkably, music therapy reaches even those who seem to be unreachable.
The power of music, applied therapeutically, can result in your children’s and teens’ increased ability to focus, and may help with speech development, as well as honing their fine and gross motor skills.
Music therapists like the four I spoke to seem to agree that music has proven to be an effective support therapy in reaching children with autism, and building a rapport with them, which can then be employed to improve communication and social skills.
Susan Elaine Long — a parent and former New York City resident who now lives in Rome — is a classically trained vocalist who has worked as a voice teacher for 20 years and earned her master’s in music therapy from the University of West England in Bristol in 2012.
Long is thrilled to now have the opportunity to weigh in on autism and the healing power of music, based on her personal observations while working with children and adults with autism spectrum disorder and Down Syndrome for the PLAI Theatre in Harlem and with children in after-school programs serviced by the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music.
“My first internship was with autistic children,” recalls Long. “The room was equipped to be welcoming, warm, and resonant with wooden floors and walls. The floor was covered with simple percussion instruments such as drums, xylophones, a glockenspiel, a piano, bells, maracas, etc.
“The therapist entered the room, where a 5-year-old boy was running his hand along the wall as he ran around the room. Upon entry into the room, the child gave no sign of being aware of the therapist’s presence.
“The music therapist, after observing the child’s behavior and movements for a time, began playing simple rhythms and patterns using the instruments and his voice, which mirrored the child’s every sound and movement, but also allowed room for silences or time for a response.
“Gradually, it became evident that the child, on some deep level, understood he was being communicated to. The child became more attentive in miniscule ways, such as slowing down and moving back and forth, toward and away from the therapist, but then returning to his previous stereotypical behavior of running and brushing the wall.
“At first, answers were only pauses in the child’s movements, as he began listening to the sounds. This was gradually followed by ‘answers’ using vocal sounds and slight body movements and occasionally, sounds created by striking one of the instruments.
“Gradually, it became apparent that the child was making sounds and waiting for the therapist to answer. This dialogue continued with increasing participation on the part of the child until, toward the end of the hour session, the child was in the therapist’s arms. It was amazing! I — and my fellow intern — had tears of wonder in our eyes.
“Maybe it had been just a ‘good day,’ but change is built on more and more good days.
“This is how music therapy reaches even those who seem to be unreachable. This child was non-verbal, but music, used therapeutically, was a language that he could understand and use to communicate with the world outside of his head. Music, as in this example, was being used to create social interaction, build connection and communication.
“Simple instruments can be played by anyone and can be modified to fit the ability of the client where physical handicaps are also present.
“Playing an instrument requires and therefore develops coordination. Music therapy is often used with physically handicapped individuals as a pleasant means to develop motor skills. Music requires not only hearing, which is involuntary, but listening, which alongside the use of motor skills, develops cognition, and in addition, as stated above, communication skills.
“Simple musical activities create positive experiences, because one cannot make a mistake. By using quality instruments, the experience provides beautiful sounds as well. This leads to increased self-esteem. The client is empowered by successfully creating something pleasant. And music is fun!
“I have been collaborating over the past two years with Plai Theatre, (Performers Linked by Able Imaginations) a privately funded organization that works throughout Greater New York combining theater and music. The combination of theater and music gives even more opportunity for incorporating the whole body and activating the entire central nervous system. This work has given me many opportunities to work with autistic children and adults.
“Groups we worked with were usually made up of various development disorders. Depending on the severity of the diagnosis, sessions were created to meet the needs of the participants, while stimulating skill development (communication, coordination, socialization, self-esteem, impulse control, motor, and cognitive).
“With a group of Down syndrome and Asperger children, we wrote, played, sang, and produced a show with and for their families and friends (props, costumes and all). Family members were encouraged to participate, which also helps improve relationships by sharing an enjoyable activity together.
“Families often become overwhelmed by the needs of a disabled family member and are under great stress themselves. The activity gave siblings and parents a chance to let off some steam, too. The children loved the work, which was developed over a three-month period of weekly encounters, but it was the family that appreciated, was deeply moved, and sometimes surprised by the abilities of their disabled child.
“The most frequent comment of parents was the gratitude they felt seeing their child succeed. There is still little room in our world for the disabled, and they are often excluded from the possibility of experiencing personal success. They know they are ‘different’ and this becomes equated with ‘less.’ Therefore, the pride one experiences in performing even a simple show can be exhilarating and psychologically nourishing.”
PLAI Theatre [4768 Broadway in Manhattan, (917) 426-7524, www.plai-
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Ana C. Leguisamo, of Ready, Set, Grow Pediatric Occupational Therapy, P.C., located in Rego Park, Queens, weighed in about her work in music and therapy with children ages 3 to 10.
“Music is one of the most powerful tools we as occupational therapists can use in our treatment sessions with children that have sensory integration processing disorders and autism,” sayd Leguisamo.
“In my office, specifically, we use a wide variety of music, such as baroque — Mozart, Vivaldi, and Bach — as well as music with increased bass to help children self-soothe, self-regulate, decrease anxiety, organize, decrease or increase arousal level, improve focusing and concentration skills, and increase the amount of neural connections that are made, so that we can achieve faster progress.
“We have also seen remarkable results in children with autism and sensory integration processing disorders that partake in the intensive therapy model of the integrated listening system music home program that we offer at our office.
“One of my clients with a diagnosis of autism and apraxia came in to see me when he was 4 years old. He had been receiving early intervention services since he was 2, as well as all related services, such as speech, occupational therapy, and physical therapy, but he was not demonstrating progress, so his school referred him to my office for outpatient services.
“When he first came into my office, I found him pacing back and forth in my waiting room, ‘stimming,’ and not playing with the toys. When he came into my gym, he moved in a lethargic and slow manner. He did not make eye contact, did not talk; did not even respond to his name or simple, one-step commands, such as ‘sit down’ or ‘stand up.’ He also did not make any type of vocalizations or sounds.
“Music was one of the most powerful instruments that I used in conjunction with all the other modalities that I used in order to elicit a response from him. I found that certain types of music helped to ‘wake up’ his body, as well as [helped him to] organize and self-soothe. His response to this type of intervention was incredible. His mother reported to me that he made more progress in one year than he had done in all his previous years of receiving intervention.
“The child is now 6 years old, turning 7 soon. He has [improved by] leaps and bounds but continues to present with significant delays. I found that I was able to help him to achieve a more optimal level of arousal and [lengthen his] attention span when I played music from Vivaldi and upbeat music with loud bass. I also found that music by Mozart helped to decrease his anxiety level and increase his focusing skills. His mom and I felt that this is what really helped him the most.”
Ready, Set, Grow Pediatric Occupational Therapy, P.C. [65-11 Booth St. in Rego Park, (718) 406–9296 ready
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Brooklyn parent Toby Williams has served as director of Music Therapy at The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music since 2011. She is also an adjunct professor at New York University. Her daughter Cleo, 7, attends PS 321.
Williams has worked with many children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and shares her valuable experiences with parents.
“One little girl I work with started with me at 7 years old and was non-verbal,” recalls Williams. “Though social seeking (eye contact, getting excited about playing), she had very little functional language. Some of this is due to apraxia (a speech disorder where a child’s ability to coordinate cognitive speech messages with the motor planning involved in articulating the words is impaired). ‘Nancy’ immediately related to music. She picked up the guitar and very quickly learned to hold it and form approximated chordal patterns and fairly accurate strumming patterns. Her imitation skills were very high.
“Soon, she began to vocalize as we sang. I provided some songs that gave her opportunities to fill in vocal sounds, progressing to bi-labial sounds like ‘b’ and ‘p’ and ‘m.’ I followed the developmental line of speech and language development from infancy to articulation through playing in music.
“I consulted with her speech therapist to see what sounds she was targeting, and I placed those sounds into simple songs that gave Nancy the time it took her to make the consonant and vowel sound and vocalize.
“Singing engages the breath, and her breathe support was also very weak. I introduced the harmonica to her to work on breath support by making sustained sounds. Over time, this little girl became fully verbally communicative. She started to sing before she started to speak. She can now sing a song all the way through, such as her favorite, ‘Stand by Me,’ and get every word almost fully articulated and in tempo.
“All the wonderful therapies and learning tools are beneficial and we work in tandem. However, working with children with autism in music creates many opportunities for progress in a naturally motivating environment in many different areas of need at one time.
“Parental involvement in school settings is minimal. However, at The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music’s Music Therapy Program, which I run, our parents are very involved. Parents come to the first intake session, communicate regularly with their child’s music therapist, and sometimes sit in on sessions. Our Music Therapy for Early Intervention program has a parent component where we help parents to understand how they can relate to their children though music, while working on developmental skills.”
Toby Williams at The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music [58 Seventh Ave. in Park Slope, (718) 622-3300 X 216, toby.willi
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Dr. Alan Turry is managing director of the Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy at NYU Steinhardt, as well as researcher, senior clinician, level III trainer and educator and supervisor for advanced trainees and therapists, and teaches clinical improvisation in the NYU Graduate Music Therapy Program.
The center provides music therapy sessions for toddlers, children, teenagers, and adults on the autism spectrum. Musical interactions between child and therapist in individual therapy, or among children in a group, constitute the essence of the therapy.
“Nordoff-Robbins music therapy addresses therapeutic goals via in-depth utilization of the structural and expressive elements of both improvised and pre-composed music,” explains Turry.
“The clinical improvisation techniques that the Nordoff-Robbins music therapist employs helps coordinate the child’s playing by establishing a basic beat, offering opportunities to imitate rhythmic patterns in a spontaneous fashion, and generate a sense of anticipation with melodic phrases and harmonic cadences.
“These musical experiences are recognized by research scientists specializing in music and autism as essential in improving brain functioning in those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders.”
Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy at NYU Steinhardt [82 Washington Square E. in Washington Square, (212) 998-5151, stein
Organizations like Autism Speaks (www.autis
