In a world that often feels overwhelming, especially for children navigating trauma or neurodivergence, music offers something rare and essential: safety, connection, and expression without needing words. At Harmony Music Therapy, we see every day how musical experiences become a lifeline—helping kids build emotional regulation, resilience, and social bonds in a way that feels natural,..
At Harmony Music Therapy, we believe in the power of rhythm—not just to move our bodies, but to strengthen our brains. Decades of research now confirm what music therapists have seen for years: rhythm is a powerful tool to support cognitive development, including memory, attention, and executive functioning. Whether in a drum circle, a songwriting..
Music Therapy in mental health settings has a tremendous impact on patients. Here is just a glimpse of what might happen in a typical day of music therapy at a behavioral hospital. Geriatric Group In my Geriatric group, everyone who was present for the session was engaged by playing instruments, participating in the themed word..
Learned Helplessness is the theory that depression and anxiety compound and worsen when an individual feels that they have no control. Here’s how music therapy can help. I remember her clearly. I read through her chart and prepared my clipboard. As I walked into her room I was overwhelmed by the heaviness she seemed..
Our Music Therapists have meaningful experiences every day when working with their clients. We’ve decided to share a few of those experiences to help paint a picture of music therapy. Making a Lasting Impact through Songwriting I find music therapy rewarding for a lot of different reasons. Probably the most rewarding one is when I..
There’s a lot more to drumming than just banging out a sweet rhythm. Here are 8 surprising benefits that come with getting your groove on. When most people hear “drum circle” they may have some stereotypical associations. And for good reason, I mean our society has used drumming in some pretty strange ways for a..
If you’ve ever wondered whether there is more to music therapy than nice songs, kumbaya, and fluffy “entertainment”, then have we got news for you! Music therapy is masked and misunderstood because our culture’s conception that the primary purpose of music is for entertainment. Us Westerners have come to limit the real power of music by..
Music therapy doesn’t always help kids talk. It won’t always remove problem behaviors. And it isn’t a foolproof way to help your child improve in school. I’m a Music Therapist, so why would I say this? Because I’m being completely honest. What Music Therapy Will NOT Do Music Therapy doesn’t cure cancer. It doesn’t take away mental..
What is music therapy and how does it work? Good question. Here’s a simple answer. This is a somewhat difficult question to answer because music therapy can look very different based on who you’re helping. But for our purposes here, I will answer it based on our work here at Harmony Music Therapy, which focuses..
When the head and the heart work together in music therapy, amazing things can happen! I recently attended the Grief and Loss Training provided by the Center for Music Therapy in End of Life Care. Dr. Russell Hilliard was the instructor, and he flooded us with valuable information and beautiful learning moments unlike anything I’ve..