"The Research"

Since I first entered the field of music therapy, I've said things like, "Well the research shows…<insert awesome research finding here>"

In fact, most music therapy advocates that I know say similar things.

Music therapists get especially excited with new music research findings because for a long time, we didn’t have the wealth of information we have now.

When music therapists started publishing research in the 1960’s, they could determine that intervention “X” worked for these clients in this setting, or that intervention “Y” worked for this group of people in that setting. Often times, they didn’t know why the intervention worked. The technology simply didn’t exist to determine the “why.”

Years later, with the advent of brain imaging, we were finally able to gain insights into the why of music therapy interventions. We could see which parts of the brain were active during different activities, including music therapy interventions.

As our understanding of how music and rhythm affect the human body, so many professionals talk about "the research." It almost feels like "the research" is some mythical being that hands down authoritative findings to deepen our understanding of the world.

For some people, there’s comfort in having an authority such as “the research” to guiding their view of how the world works. The question becomes, do we blindly trust that authority, or do we make our own judgments based on the best information we have available?

Besides being a music therapist, I’m also a teacher. As a teacher, I like to make information accessible to as many people as possible. The more information you have access to, the better you can understand, and make your own decisions about how the world works.

Once when I was about to undergo a treatment protocol for depression, I was told there were several research studies showing the effectiveness of the protocol. I expressed interest in reading the research and I was offered a pamphlet summarizing, in a very watered down way, the typical results of completing the protocol.

I clarified myself by saying, “No, I want to read the research…not this stuff you give to everyone else!”

After some looking through their files, they were able to produce copies of the studies their pamphlets were referencing.

I was able to read how the research was conducted, and what the results were without the filter of a marketing department that was trying to sell the treatment.

This helped me understand on a deeper level the procedure I was undertaking, and ultimately made the decision to try the protocol easier.

This is what I want to help facilitate for others.

For those that are interested, I’m collecting research articles on my website that detail the effects that music and rhythm have on the human body.

Admittedly, this research is filled with jargon, and can be a little difficult to understand at times. I find myself looking up unfamiliar terms when reading research sometimes, and this is a field I’ve been working in for nearly two decades.

I am currently working on summaries of all the articles posted on hiddenrhythmsmc.com for a more user friendly experience for those of us that don’t speak biomedically on a daily basis.

Most people will not be interested in seeing the actual published research, but I want to demystify the world of research for those who are interested.

My hope is that this will become a valuable resource for those who are as fascinated as I am by the power that music and rhythm have on the human body.

As Rod Serling used to say, “submitted for your approval.”