Chapter 1 – Setting The Scene
Attributes for musical flexibility and responsiveness
This program was informed by interviews with 10 diverse music practitioner in search of approaches to musical flexibility and responsiveness. The following attributes were distilled from the interview data and underpin this program.
Diversity
It is important to respect and value participants’ skills and work with them to find the best way to support them by embracing their diverse musical backgrounds as sources of strategies that may contribute to the further development. This is evident in the many approaches across all ten practitioners from the interview series.
Strength focus
All participants are accomplished musicians. Many are accomplished music therapists, or at least recent graduates who have met the industry benchmarks to earn registration. As well as respecting their musical achievements, valuing participants’ existing skills also provides a starting point to build further skills. This was evident in Penny’s approach, applying her guitar approach to her fundamental keyboard skills to develop flexibility on the piano in music therapy.
Flexibility and responsiveness
One-size-fits-most does not work for everyone. Participants will need flexible support to meet their individual learning goals. The entire project aims to empower musical flexibility and responsiveness so music therapists can support their clients meet their therapeutic goals more effectively. It now appears obvious this same approach is appropriate in designing and delivering th program.
This was somewhat of an unexpected outcome of the interview series and is most evident comparing Stanley*, Jennifer*, Penny*, and Martin*. All music therapists with classical piano backgrounds, they had vastly different experiences learning how to improvise. Stanley needed a vague opportunity and Jennifer a suggestive nudge to explore music beyond the score. Penny* needed time to find her way and Martin* needed a concrete framework to begin to unpick the score. Cameron* was inquisitive and observed some strategies were more flexible and adaptable than others.
Habitus
Guided exposure to new music and approaches increases accessibility and broadens musical perspective and understanding. The habitus is a living organism that can grow when nourished. This is most evident in Shirley* who was always encouraged to explore music. In a different way, Steve* went looking for musical extension in the liner notes and found this fed into his musical approach. The power of nourishing one’s habitus also emerged from Ella’s* experience. While she enjoyed improvisational approaches to the drum kit, it was not until an undergraduate improvisation class that she realised this approach could also be used on the trumpet.
Managing doubt and uncertainty
Exploring music can be daunting, especially if this exploration has previously been discouraged by musical mentors. Providing concrete steps to follow can provide access, without which musical flexibility may remain inaccessible to some. This is most obvious in Martin*, who needed a flexibility-based framework of jazz harmonic improvisation to establish himself as a confident improviser which he was then able to extrapolate to other musical parameters.
These attributes informed a professional development program for music therapists that aimed to empower musical flexibility and responsiveness in Part 2 of this study. Chapter 6 documents the progression of this program as it evolved over three participatory action research cycles.
*Pseudonym