Читать книгу The Creative Arts in Counseling - Samuel Gladding T., Samuel T. Gladding - Страница 39

What is your favorite type of music? How has it influenced your life? How do you think it might be therapeutic for you or for others?

According to Peters (2001), “Corporations such as MUZAK have made a business out of supplying background music to positively influence and regulate people’s moods and behaviors in offices, busi nesses,” and other environments (pp. 31–32). The influence of music in daily life is truly phenomenal. Even though people may not always remember lyrics, they seem to be influenced by “the beat, the rhythm, [and] the sound” of music they listen to regularly (A. White, 1985, p. 67). For many ordinary people, “music is the most significant experience in life” (Storr, 1992, p. 168).

Overall, music allows feelings to be revealed that may not be defined in words. In essence, music “is a form of communication analogous to speech in that it has cadences and punctuation” (D. Aldridge, 1989, p. 93). For example, new age music, which makes use of long themes and slow tempos, expresses a sentiment and affect that cannot be translated into a verbal equivalent. Music is seen as a therapeutic ally to verbal approaches to counseling because it links people together and gives them a common denominator (Rosenblatt, 1991).

In this chapter, I explore the multidimensional premise behind the power of music as well as the practical use of music in counseling. I distinguish between music therapy and the use of music in counseling. For instance, music therapy, which is much more formal, is the use of music within a therapeutic relationship to address physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs of individuals. In addition, I explain and illustrate how music can be used with a variety of populations (from children to older adults) and in various settings (from clinics to educational environments). The use of music with other creative arts is also discussed.