Welcome.

Describing music therapy is akin to the visual description of a cut glass crystal: some sides catch the light and are illuminated more than others. Likewise, this web site does not tell the whole music therapy story, but selectively describes the field of music therapy and provides resources for further exploration.

Music is universal and appealing.

Musicianship is dependent on many factors but the capacity for musicality, musical self-expression, and enjoyment is innate. ALL PERSONS ARE MUSICAL UNTIL THEY LEARN TO BE OTHERWISE.

Music is a therapeutic medium.

Inherent in music are many qualities that render it conducive to therapeutic process:

• Music affects us physically; it moves us.
  
  
• Music is time-ordered; it has an organizing effect.
  
  
• Music is a social experience; it is a means for interaction and participation.
  
  
• Music has the capacity to stimulate memory, images, and modify mood.
  
  
• Music is holistic and integrative; melody (intellect), rhythm (somatic energy), timbre (sensory experience) and harmony (emotions) speaks to and elicits a response from the whole person.
  
  
• Music is communication that may be used directly in nonverbal music dialogues or indirectly as a means of expression that bridges inner and outer experience.

Music therapy for all.

Music therapy entails an aesthetic experience of music that is available to all, young and old, regardless of the nature or extent of any disability or condition. No previous music skills are needed.

Music therapy is a professional practice.

Music therapists have a minimum of an undergraduate degree in music therapy that consists of specified academic coursework, musicianship, and clinical supervision. The Canadian Association for Music Therapy (CAMT) is the professional organization for music therapy in Canada.