For Music Therapists
Easy Songwriting: “Rattlin’ Bog”
Songwriting can be a great way to foster joy and self expression. Here’s an easy songwriting experience using a traditional Irish song. (Click here for a video explanation.) “The Rattlin’ Bog” is a traditional Irish folk tune that has over 120 different recorded versions. Since it has been passed down through time by oral tradition,…
Read MoreFor Covid-19 Commemoration: “Auld Lang Syne”
We often think of “Auld Lang Syne” as a song for New Year’s Eve. Traditionally sung at the stroke of midnight among cheers and clinking glasses, the song provides an opportunity to say goodbye to the old year with fondness. This song may also feel strangely appropriate in March 2021, one year after the Covid-19…
Read MoreInfection Control Procedures and COVID-19
Hello, With the recent news about COVID-19 diagnoses in Johnson County and St. Louis, I am writing to reassure you that the Soundscaping Source team is following these developments closely. Nothing is more important to us than the safety of the older adults we serve, and we are putting extra attention into the infection control…
Read MoreLessons Learned From A Sprained Ankle
Earlier this week, I was picking up some children’s Tylenol from CVS for my feverish first grader. Her little sister (age 3) was unhappy that I wouldn’t let her buy candy, too, which necessitated me carrying her out of the store. A distracted, crying preschooler in arms, I stepped off the curb wrong and ended…
Read More5 Lessons From Building A B2B Practice
Did you know there are two main kinds of doing business? This is one of those basic business concepts we didn’t learn in our music therapy programs, but it’s an important one to understand if you are planning to build your career in private practice, as a music therapy business owner. Some of us work…
Read More5 Things I’ve Learned About Running a B2C Business
This is a guest post from my colleague and friend Mary Altom, MT-BC, of Music Therapy Kids. Enjoy! Fellow Biz Owners Raise Your Hand Anybody else out there also a music therapy business owner? It happened to me by serendipitous accident. I have worked in special education in schools since the beginning of my music…
Read MoreAlert! MT Rant Ahead
This article originally appeared on the blog of Cathy Knoll, MA, MT-BC at MusicWorksPublications.com. ALERT: RANT AHEAD! The time has arrived for me to share some very strong opinions with my music therapy colleagues and other professionals who provide services for the elderly. Because I was born in 1951, I am now officially a “senior…
Read MoreNew Humorous Verses for "Let Me Call You Sweetheart"
If you’ve been around eldercare for a while, you’ve probably heard the song “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.” Despite the fact that this song, published in 1910, is older that almost all of the clients we serve, it remains a popular choice, simply because many, many people know the melody and the words. In terms…
Read MoreTop 10 Songs About The Weather
I don’t know what it’s like in your neck of the woods, but here in the Midwest, the weather is a popular topic of discussion. It doesn’t matter whether it’s rainy, snowy, or a perfectly sunny day – the weather is a pretty reliable conversation starter. Here’s a collection of 10 songs about the weather,…
Read MoreTop 10 Rules To Break In Music Therapy Groups In Senior Living
As diligent students, we music therapists graduate from our programs and become board-certified with certain ideas of how things should work in music therapy sessions. But of course, music therapists work with people, and with human beings, there is an exception to every rule. As I’ve matured as a clinician, I have gained flexibility in…
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