Music therapy in Greece and its applications in dementia and end-of-life care

Giorgos Tsiris - ORCID: 0000-0001-9421-412X https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9421-412XIn this report we focus on music therapy in Greece and its applications in dementia and end-of-life care. Initially we offer an overview of music therapy in the country and outline key developments in terms of professionalisation, education, research and scholarship. Exploring these developments from a critical perspective, we acknowledge contemporary debates and their implications for the advancement of the field. This exploration offers a platform for understanding the current applications of music therapy in dementia and adult end-of-life care in Greece. We provide examples of recent projects and initiatives alongside broader considerations regarding the status of dementia and end-of-life care. We conclude by offering some perspectives for future potential developments in the field.http://approaches.gr/tsiris-r20201017/12pubpub

Performing spirituality in music therapy: Towards action, context and the everyday

Despite various theoretical explorations of spirituality in music therapy, including debates about its perceived threat to music therapy’s development as a legitimate profession, only a relatively small number of empirical studies have been conducted to date. Exploring mostly individual experiences of spirituality, these studies tend to focus on positive aspects of spirituality, such as peak moments. With no single definition of spirituality, this thesis sets outs to open up a space where diverse, even conflicting, spiritualities are explored. It is based on two complementary studies through which I explore music therapists’ perceptions of spirituality and its (ir)relevance to music therapy (pilot study) as well as the performance of spirituality in everyday music therapy contexts (follow-up study). The pilot study is an international survey of 358 qualified and trainee music therapists whilst the follow-up study is an ethnographically-informed exploration of spirituality within three UK-based music therapy contexts. The survey findings provide an insight into music therapists’ perceptions of spirituality, including its place in their training, practice and professional life. Music therapists’ dilemmas and suggestions for future actions regarding spirituality are also highlighted. Adopting a performative view of spirituality, the ethnographically-informed study offers an exploration of spirituality in-action and in-situ. The findings expand beyond immediate music-making situations, to include broader professional practices, systems and frameworks pertaining to spirituality in and around music therapy. This involves a critical investigation of professional vocabularies, identities, and organisational values and agendas in connection to music therapists’ stances and practices. The thesis suggests a hybrid pneumatology in music therapy. Characterised by interpretative elasticity, spirituality emerges as a ‘boundary object’; a hybrid construct which affords the co-existence of unfinished spiritualities as well as their multiple and heterogeneous translations. Repositioning spirituality as a vital subject area in music therapy, the thesis draws implications for further developments in the field

Exploring the spiritual in music

Tsiris, Giorgos - ORCID 0000-0001-9421-412X https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9421-412XWe warmly welcome you to this special issue of Approaches. Spirituality is a shared area of interest for many disciplines that explore the role of music in human life, including music therapy, ethnomusicology, music education, music philosophy and theology. Interdisciplinary dialogue in this area, however, has been limited. Responding to this situation, and with an explicit focus on spirituality and music in relation to wellbeing and education, this special issue brings to the fore ideas, questions and debates that often remain hidden within the confines of each discipline.http://approaches.gr/tsiris-e2019112411pubpub

Adapting to change, welcoming otherness [Editorial]

Giorgos Tsiris - ORCID: 0000-0001-9421-412X https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9421-412Xhttp://approaches.gr/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/0iii-Approaches-12-2-2020-e20201230-coombes-eng.pdf12pubpub

Music therapy and special music education: Interdisciplinary dialogues

Drawing from Professor Alice-Ann Darrow's life-long work in the fields of music therapy and special music education, this interview brings to the fore the importance of interdisciplinary dialogue. A range of themes (including the notion of 'musical rights' and inclusion) emerge and are discussed in relation to the development of interdisciplinary and collaborative work between different music practices. Darrow shares experiences from her personal and professional life that have shaped her work and way of thinking over the years. This interview can provide a framework within which readers can situate and further understand Darrow's rich contribution within the fields of music therapy and special music education both nationally and internationally.sch_occ5pub4050pub

Key changes and developments

2015 has been a year of key changes and developments in Approaches bringing the journal into a new cycle of its life. In the summer of this year, the special issue on 'Music Therapy in Europe: Paths of Professional Development' was published. This issue of Approaches, as outlined in the respective editorial (Ridder & Tsiris 2015), brought many 'firsts': in addition to being published not only in online but also in print format, this issue was the first collaborative publication of Approaches together with a partner organisation - the European Music Therapy Confederation (EMTC). This has set the ground for future collaborations with other professional and disciplinary bodies.sch_occRidder, H. M., & Tsiris, G. (2015). 'Thinking globally, acting locally': Music therapy in Europe. Approaches: Music Therapy & Special Music Education, Special Issue 7(1), 3-97pub4428pub

Learning from service evaluation: Identifying 'impact areas' of music therapy services.

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Music therapy and special music education: Interdisciplinary dialogues

Drawing from Professor Alice-Ann Darrow's life-long work in the fields of music therapy and special music education, this interview brings to the fore the importance of interdisciplinary dialogue. A range of themes (including the notion of 'musical rights' and inclusion) emerge and are discussed in relation to the development of interdisciplinary and collaborative work between different music practices. Darrow shares experiences from her personal and professional life that have shaped her work and way of thinking over the years. This interview can provide a framework within which readers can situate and further understand Darrow's rich contribution within the fields of music therapy and special music education both nationally and internationally.sch_occ5pub4050pub

Playing marbles, playing music [Editorial]

Giorgos Tsiris - ORCID: 0000-0001-9421-412X https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9421-412Xhttps://approaches.gr/dos-santos-e20210824/13pubpub

Outcome Measures in Music Therapy: A Free Online Resource by the Nordoff Robbins Research Team

Welcome to the Outcome Measures in Music Therapy resource. Developed by the Nordoff Robbins research team, this resource provides information about outcome measures1 developed in the field of music therapy.sch_occpub4429pu