On Sunday, April 10, 2011, the Association for Music Therapy, Singapore, AMTS, will celebrate the profession of music therapy and the power of music when used for therapeutic outcomes at the Library@Esplanade.
Music Therapy is an allied health profession, not unlike Occupational Therapy or Physical Therapy, with a code of ethics and foundation in research and clinical-based practice. The functional goals of music therapy range from developing skills in children with special needs or learning challenges, motivating rehabilitation or supporting creative emotional expression to decreasing depression and anxiety. The Association for Music Therapy (Singapore).
All over the world, music therapists serve both young and old in hospitals, nursing homes, prisons, mental health settings and schools. These graduates from university programmes are knowledgeable about music therapy theories, methods and techniques and have extensive supervised clinical experience. Research has been positive for shortening the time of hospitalization for prematurely born infants from two to nine days, increasing communicative behaviours of children with autism, to reducing the agitation and disruptive behaviours of persons with dementia.
Locally, over 1000 clients benefit every week from 1-1 or group sessions that are individualized to address specific need areas while validating unique strengths. Music therapists work in various settings in Singapore. These include VWOs serving a wide range of client populations: Rainbow Centre Margaret Drive School, Rainbow Centre Yishun Park School, Asian Welfare Women’s Association School, St. Andrew’s Autism Centre, Singapore Association for Mental Health, Beyond Social Services, Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore), and Dover Park Hospice. In addition, Singapore General Hospital, KKH and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital also provide music therapy services. A non-threatening creative arts modality, music therapy enables non-verbal communication of thoughts, feelings and emotions across a musical platform.
This 2nd MT day event at the Library@Esplanade will showcase local music therapy cases from a range of populations, including special education, medical, and mental health. Local music therapists will share from their experiences and engage the audience in interactive music-making. Tentative programme may be downloaded from http://singaporemusictherapy.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/programme-2011.pdf
For more information, please email musictherapy.sg@gmail.com
Theme: “Building Musical Bridges” – 2nd MT Day, April 10, 2011
Date: April 10, 2011 (Sunday)
Place: Library@Esplanade
Time: 2:30 to 5 p.m.
Cost: Free, open to public, no pre-registration needed.
