Jake Grimsley

MUED 371

Independent Research Project: Annotated Bibliography

Article 1 (Karkou, 2009)

APA Citation Information:

Karkou, V. (2009). Art therapies in schools: Research and practice. Arts Therapies in Schools:

Research and Practice, 9-279.

Purpose of the Study: 

Designed to fill a gap in literature focused around art therapies in education, this book, through

the lens of both mainstream and special schools, identifies work from the four art therapies (art,

music, drama, dance) in education, rather than only in the context of health, as these therapies are

usually discussed.  The book is meant as a reference to working with the huge array of needs of

children, not unlike the huge array of needs faced by art therapists in schools.  Research for this

project is based on strict evaluation following quantitative, qualitative, and/or arts-based

methodologies.  So that the book isn’t only from the perspective of Karkou, the writer,

contributions are made from art therapists from six other countries, adding on to Karkou’s

perspective from Britain.  

Methods and Participants:  

The book has two parts: the first containing contributions from work in mainstream schools, and

the second from special schools.  In the first part, a dance therapist from the USA speaks about

her experience helping a child with school bullying, another therapist discusses teenage violence

rising in American public schools, and over the course of nine chapters, other arts therapists give

their research and experience helping students with a variety of problems art therapy can help

with in an educational environment.  Part two features experiences of art therapists from many

countries speaking about their research and experience with students with autism for the most

part.  Studies of girls with Rett Syndrome and severe learning disabilities are also included.

Key Findings:

The results of this book don’t speak directly to every single way an art therapist can be used in a

job, but do speak to the main themes of work in art therapy.  These main themes are the needs of

the clients, the type of work, theoretical influences, research evidence, and collaboration. 

Although all of these matter tremendously, the two that stand out to me most are the clients and

the type of work.  Client needs in this book cover examples from students with a huge amount of

very serious risk concerning mental illness as well as other kinds of harm.  Examples of specifics

as to how arts therapists employed in an educational faculty can help are invaluable to this topic.

Discussion Points:

Client needs and how art therapists in education can help with those needs are the most important

parts of this book for me.  While this book is written by someone British, it includes perspectives

from a variety of sources, even in the US, where arts therapy and arts education are kept mostly

separate.  When combined, arts therapists have a lot they can help with in school systems.
Comments/Questions:

As far as sources go, this may be the best I can find.  Most sources on my topic are either from

the perspective of music education or music therapy, but not both, especially in the US.  While

the author of this book is British, an American perspective is still included, as well as some

reasons why education and therapy are combined more in European countries.

Article 2 (Nordoff & Robbins, 2006)

APA Citation Information:

Nordoff, P., & Robbins, C. (2006). Music therapy in special education. Music Therapy in

Special Education, 12-208.

Purpose of the Study:

This book originally started with a series of manuals designed for special education teachers in

Pennsylvania, and as resource materials for music therapy workshops and seminars in a number

of different countries.  As a book, its use is to be for music therapists working in many different

settings, as well as public school music teachers working with students with special needs.  Work

with special needs adults is also spoken about in this book.  

Methods and Participants:

This book, through it’s six chapters, shows a great deal of methods designed to help students

with special needs through music therapy.  These six chapters (singing, resonator bells,

instrumental activities, plays with music, “pif-paf-poltrie,” and the rewards live) give a variety of

different techniques designed to help students with special needs thrive through teamwork.  
Key Findings:

Music therapy in a classroom is not a completely common thing, and, as such, will take some

work to integrate well.  Although this is true, holding regular and frequent music therapy

sessions should help a tremendous amount, and with the techniques shown, progress should be

made.

Discussion Points:

Teamwork was a big part of this book.  Building an environment so that the teacher works with

the students, and the students work with them as well, is the way to make sure that you, bringing

music therapy in the classroom, will be successful.

Comments/Questions:

This book doesn’t fall completely in line with my topic, but still gives very interesting

perspectives on music therapy.  Although I want to speak on music therapy in mainstream

classrooms, not only special classrooms, in our world today, special classrooms are where you

will find most music therapy being done and because of this, it is extraordinarily important to

pay attention to.

Article 3 (Salvador & Pasiali, 2016)

APA Citation Information:

Salvador, K., & Pasiali, V. (2016). Intersections between music education and music therapy:

Education reform, arts education, exceptionality, and policy at the local level.
 Intersections Between Music Education and Music Therapy: Education Reform, Arts

Education, Exceptionality, and Policy at the Local Level, 118(2), 93–103. 

Purpose of the Study:

Written by a music educator and a music therapist, this article examines the crossroads and

intersections between music education and music therapy.  The article also contains suggestions

for the future based on how these two intersect now, including increasing educators’ and

administrators’ understanding of music therapy, treating music therapists as allied professionals,

and improving music educator preparation.

Methods and Participants:

These findings come from the experience of the two authors, and covers everything from the

purpose of music therapy and music education to applications, IEPs, and placement.  Covering a

wide variety of topics, this article speaks on exactly how the two fields intersect and how they do

so.

Key Findings:

The suggestions are the most significant thing in this article.  It spends most of its time looking at

how the two intersect, but suggestions of how to move forward from this include increasing

educators’ understanding of music therapy as well as many others, designed to seamlessly

integrate the two forms more than they are currently.

Discussion Points:
Again, these suggestions are the most interesting parts to come out of this article.  They speak to

how music therapy and music education relate to each other now, and especially how they can do

more in the future if some changes are made.

Comments/Questions:

This article, while not hugely lengthy, provides a great perspective from a music educator and

music therapist that not only want to analyze how the two are used together now, but also how

they can be used together more in the future.

Article 4 (Darnley-Smith & Patey, 2003)

APA Citation Information: 

Darnley-Smith, R., & Patey, H. M. (2003). Music therapy. Music Therapy, 11-110.

Purpose of the Study:

Again showing how much more music therapy is used is Britain over the US, this book takes a

British perspective on music therapy.  Written as a sort of introduction to music therapy, this

book uses the perspectives of them using their own clinical background to speak about music

therapy, and to introduce readers to certain introductory ways to use this therapy, such as

improvised performing ensembles.

Methods and Participants:

Part 1 of the book speaks to the history of music therapy, what it is, as well as the different

perspectives and ways it is used in Britain.  Part 2 focuses on practical and clinical issues,
speaking to the authors’ own experiences in the field, as well as presenting various case studies

on the matter.

Key Findings:

This book is intended as an introduction to music therapy in Britain, as well as the different ways

it’s used and the different perspectives in the field.  The parts that stuck out to me the most were

the clinical examples, and how the book showed the reader how to find out more on the subject,

which I thought seemed to be a great outlet for those who may not know much on the subject.

Discussion Points:

The clinical/practical studies in this book were the most interesting to me, and give a great

understanding to the reader of a baseline for how this field is used generally in real-life

situations.

Comments/Questions:

This book is from a British perspective, not an American one, so it does not relate entirely to the

things that I may experience as an educator, but may be more useful as with all my readings I’m

finding that Britain is where this practice is the most prominent.  This doesn’t relate to my topic

of music therapy and education together, but works great as an example of music therapy as a

baseline.

Article 5 (Swart, 2019)

APA Citation Information:

Swart, I. (2019). Benefits of music education to previously disadvantaged south african learners:

Perspectives of music teachers in the greater tshwane metropolis. Benefits of Music

Education to Previously Disadvantaged South African Learners: Perspectives of Music

Teachers in the Greater Tshwane Metropolis, 38(1), 52-65.

Purpose of the Study:

Using specific South African learners as an example, this article is more of an argument for why

it would be very harmful to remove music education from our schooling systems as is somewhat

the trend these days.  With these learners as the example, the article shows how disadvantaged

learners can have real social change.  The article explores the many ways music is helpful to

learners as a way to argue against removing these programs.

Methods and Participants:

The article gives a background on the situation, before jumping into perspectives from teachers

in the greater Tshwane Metropolis.  Also discussed is the factors enabling sustainability and

growth from these programs, as the article is encouraging this growth to happen.

Key Findings:

This article gives real qualitative indicators of the importance of music education and the various

ways it helps students, especially already disadvantaged ones, grow in their educational

journeys.  

Discussion Points:
Basically the same as the key findings, the main point of this article up for discussion is the

various ways music education actually helps learners to grow in ways that other educational

programs don’t.

Comments/Questions:

This doesn’t have anything to do with music therapy, although one of the main reasons I wanted

to do this topic was because I know music already has many therapeutic effects on learners.  This

article giving those perspectives, as well as those perspectives being from directly disadvantaged

groups shows a great perspective on this being true.

Article 6 (Schmid & Ostermann, 2010)

APA Citation Information:

Schmid, W. & Ostermann, T. (2010). Home-based music therapy - a systematic overview of

settings and conditions for an innovative service in healthcare. Home-based Music

Therapy - a Systematic Overview of Settings and Conditions for an Innovative Service in

Healthcare, 10(1), 1-10.

Purpose of the Study: 

Most major western health systems are making their systems more centered around out-patient

care.  While this is happening, music therapy is also working towards this goal of home-based

music therapy, helping patients from the convenience of their own homes.  This article explores

that as well as the methods and results from how it is used.

Methods and Participants:

For this article, 20 international publications, 11 clinical studies, and nine years from practice,

mostly from the US, were used to create the qualitative synthesis found in the information

studied.

Key Findings:

Most of the patients were elderly, and music listening programs did play a great part in

improving depression, mood, and overall quality of life in the time that these patients engaged in

music therapy.

Discussion Points:

The results are the most prominent part of this article, showing that music therapy and music

listening programs played a pivotal role in helping patients through their individual situations.

Comments/Questions:

This is another article not relating directly to my topic, but still useful to know and to use as an

example of how music therapy does help patients, and with the large amount of research done,

the results are fairly trustworthy.

Article 7 (McFerran & Wigram, 2010)

APA Citation Information:

McFerran, K., & Wigram, T. (2010). Adolescents, music and music therapy: Methods and

techniques for clinicians, educators and students. Adolescents, Music and Music Therapy:

Methods and Techniques for Clinicians, Educators and Students, 17-288.

Purpose of the Study:

This book relates directly toward music with teenagers and adolescents, and music therapy. 

Mostly overall, this book speaks about the reasons to use music with young people, and the ways

in which it helps them.  This book does not relate directly to teenagers who are involved in music

programs at their respective schools, but moreover that all teenagers have something to gain

from music being in their lives, be it mental or physical.

Methods and Participants:

Through four parts, this book gives a background on the subject, methods of using songs with

teenagers, and methods of using improvisation with teenagers, and contemporary approaches to

the topic of using music with adolescents to give them a therapeutic experience.

Key Findings:

This book isn’t exactly written for music educators, but moreover for educators as a whole who

may be interested in using music as a means to making their students better through the process

of music therapy.  The biggest takeaway from this for me was that music therapy relates to all

adolescents, and even all people, rather than just those who already engage in music on a more

regular basis.

Discussion Points:

As previously stated, the most interesting part of this book for me was that all adolescents have a

use for music therapy, not just those who already engage in music.

Comments/Questions:
This book is extremely useful, especially as it is relating directly towards how music therapy

affects young people, directly in the age range of those I was hoping to write about for my topic. 

While it isn’t only in the music classroom, this book is extremely useful speaking to the ways

music helps youth, as well as methods for how to do this.

Article 8 (Ballantyne & Baker, 2013)

APA Citation Information:

Ballantyne, J. & Baker, F. A. (2013). Leading together, learning together: Music education and

music therapy students’ perceptions of a shared practicum. Leading Together, Learning

Together: Music Education and Music Therapy Students’ Perceptions of a Shared

Practicum, 35(1), 67-82.

Purpose of the Study:

To speak on the health benefits of music and music therapy for all students, this article uses the

example of a creativity leadership project implemented by music therapy and music education

students to show how these two methods, when mixed, can provide a great help.  This is shown

through the perspective of participants from a local retirement village that participated in this

project.

Methods and Participants:

The methodology for this project used the students making various groups with the retirees, and

facilitating lyric-writing/song-writing groups.  The songs are subsequently performed for the

other groups when finished.

 Key Findings:

A lot of what’s spoken about in this article is the experience these students got in improving their

ability as facilitators, and what they got out of the experience.  Also discussed is that the retirees

that participated enjoyed the experience, and it seemed to work for the most part.

Discussion Points:

What stood out to me here is how accessible music is in the context of music therapy.  With

retirees, whether they had musical experience or not, they were able to join into this project well,

and to participate, even if they had never written a song before.

Comments/Questions:

This reminded me a lot of my experiences with the Gemeinschaft home, and showed me a lot of

the same things I found there.  While this does not relate to educational school environments, the

principal and the results show the same thing, and help the same way.

Article 9 (Hohmann, Bradt, Stegemann, & Koelsch, 2017)

APA Citation Information:

Hohmann, L., Bradt, J., Stegemann, T., & Koelsch, S. (2017). Effects of music therapy and

music-based interventions in the treatment of substance use disorders: A systematic

review. Effects of Music Therapy and Music-based Interventions in the Treatment of

Substance Use Disorders: A Systematic Review, 12(11), 1-21.

Purpose of the Study:

With substance abuse and addiction to legal and illegal drugs constantly rising, this article speaks

to the extent that music therapy and music based methods actually help those with substance

abuse disorders.  Little is known about actual results for this topic, so the authors evaluated

existing benefits to summarize the benefits of music intervention for people with these problems

and disorders.

Methods and Participants:

Included in the research done were many types of studies with quantitative and qualitative data

done in systematic ways.  The studies were not limited to randomized controlled trials on the

basis that there weren’t many said trials available for this topic, and qualitative studies are useful

in examining perspectives and experiences.

Key Findings:

With no real consensus on the benefits of music therapy on patients with substance abuse

disorders, the article states the more information needed to make a truly accurate conclusion,

such as more studies with long-term outcomes.  Nevertheless, the results found showed that it

may not be a full cure or anything of the sort, but music therapy does have a place in helping

those with substance abuse disorders, especially due to its low cost and efficiency.

Discussion Points:

There is something to be said for the fact that whether or not music therapy can play huge factors

in every sort of health related issue, it can usually help to a certain degree, and it is an extremely

convenient therapeutic device to do so.

Comments/Questions:

Again, not entirely related to my topic, but I believe that this article speaks a lot to what music

therapy can do, as well as its versatility.  It doesn’t only help with mood based disorders, it has

uses for patients dealing with a number of different problems.

Article 10 (McDermott, Ridder, Baker, Wosch, Ray, & Stige, 2018)

APA Citation Information:

McDermott, O., Ridder, H. M., Baker, F. A., Wosch, T., Ray, K., & Stige, B. (2018). Indirect

music therapy practice and skill-sharing in dementia care. Indirect Music Therapy

Practice and Skill-sharing in Dementia Care, 55(3), 255-279.

Purpose of the Study:

Following a roundtable at the World Congress of Music Therapy in 2017 and further discussion

among the authors, this article was developed.  The benefits of music in those with dementia has

been a topic of hot discussion in recent years, and this article serves to show how this works, and

how it affects the wellbeing of those patients with dementia.

Methods and Participants:

This article starts with a bit of background before speaking about many of the various ways in

which music therapy can be used in houses with dementia patients, such as therapeutic

songwriting and other sorts of music listening based programs designed to help these patients.

Key Findings:
The article seeks to show the diversity of the indirect music therapy practice, and how it differs

from direct music therapy.  Also shown is the various ways in which music therapy helps

patients with dementia.

Discussion Points:

What stood out for me in this article was how far-reaching the practice of music therapy can be. 

I previously only thought of it in relation to mental health disorders such as anxiety and

depression, but it can reach much further than that, and have an impact with patients with many

different types of backgrounds.

Comments/Questions:

As said for the previous article on substance abuse, this article doesn’t relate directly to my topic,

but rather helps to show how many diverse needs music therapy can help with.