It's a Sunday afternoon and I'm working on grad school stuff - statistics - and drinking decaf tea. I've been checking out some music therapy blogs and doing other music therapy-related things. But in a couple hours, I'll have to make a pretty substantial mental shift. I'll be on stage with my band, just like I was last night. It's an interesting shift, and there are many aspects of it that I could talk about here. But today I'm going to talk about what I get out of performing with…

Wow! What a conference! I am totally on a music therapy mountaintop, and I can't wait to see what unfolds this next year. Here are a few highlights from my conference experience in Atlanta. 1. Idea-sharing I was fortunate enough to get to talk with some real music therapy rock stars this year. Being a part of the panel facilitated by Kimberly Sena Moore was most definitely a highlight. It was so interesting to hear how people use social media to advocate for the field of music therapy, as well…

Shame on you, American Idol! "What?! I love that show!" This is not actually an attack on Mr. Seacrest and the gang, but rather an observance of some of the downsides of the commercialization (and professionalization) of music. In short, people are scared to sing. And specific to this post, moms are tentative about singing to their babies. Moms may believe, "If I don't sound like Kelly Clarkson, I shouldn't sing at all." But this is untrue! We know an infant prefers his mother's voice to any other. Period. And…

This week, the 2nd edition of Imagine Early Childhood Online Magazine was released. It's sponsored by the American Music Therapy Association, and it is dedicated to early childhood music therapy. This is an exciting issue - check out the details! In this edition, I interviewed expert music therapist, Kim Hawkins. The podcast is entitled, "PracticingMusic Therapy in the NICU: An Interview with Kim Hawkins." Kim and I had a great conversation about the setup of a modern NICU, as well as applications of music therapy interventions within that environment. Check…

This is such a neat project. I've heard many people talk about the ways in which technology seems to isolate us. For example, the television ruining dinner conversation, or iPods being used to block out background sounds and avoid encounters with others. This is a much-needed reminder that technology can also be used to bring people together, and in this instance, it is really beautiful. Below are the full versions of the songs quoted in this TED talk. Beautiful compositions, stunning visuals. Enjoy.