Psychodynamic Music Therapy is a type of scientific study, which focuses on revealing unconscious issues that a person might be suffering with. It is the theory that explains personality through consciousness and unconsciousness, like unconscious beliefs and wants. Music is used in psychodynamic therapy as a tool to help someones well-being and uncover problems to do with a person.
In Music & The Mind by Paul Roberts, Ralph Spintage , who founded a pain clinic in Germany, states that music helps to sooth anxiety and improves the speed of recovery of his patients. He states that after 15 minutes of music, a patient lulls into a higher state of happiness and only 50% of recommended doses of medicine and drugs are needed to perform painful operations. Ralph Spintage believes that the rhythmic components of music helps for a person to escape into their imagination, but it is more than just a distraction for patients. It is a healer.
Juliet Alvin, who was one of the early pioneers in music therapy in the United Kingdom (UK), stated that we could discover ourselves in the music we create (1975). Using music, therapists are now able to discover a persons character, well-being and personal issues because it will be reflected in the music that a person listens to, which is a useful tool in finding the root of an issue.
Psychodynamic Music Therapy can be used to help someone notice the reoccurring patterns in someones behaviour. It is particularly a useful tool when finding the root of someones struggles with mental illnesses and disorders. The ways that therapists will use music is with, improvisation, responding visually to a piece of music, performance and discussing lyrics.
Music is used within Therapy using a range of instruments. Clients can create, improvise and express themselves through making music and then the music will be analysed as part of the treatment. The client doesn’t need to have any musical background but the music created is said to act as a bridge the unconscious and conscious, to help heal the patient.
Music has already been proven to be able to change someones entire mindset and mood, so in my opinion, music in therapy could be really useful in a lot of ways. If music can so easily alter someones mood and perspecrive, then it could be one of the greatest cures for certain mental illnesses like depression. For example, if someone was suffering with depression and listened to happy and uplifting music, it could alter their perception to make them feel happier. The way people create music in general, portrays how a persons emotional and mental state is, which could be really useful when uncovering certain aspects about someone while having a therapy session. It could benefit a client by finding out the underlying problems and then utilising music to solve and create a better mindset for the client.
https://voices.no/index.php/voices/article/view/882/726
Book: Music & The Mind – Paul Robertson
Jazzy Heath UOG 