‘Getting to know you through music.’ Music therapists’ unique ways of ‘knowing’ their clients and our collective responsibilities to articulate our implicit knowledge

Abstract

“How do you get to know your client’s inner-world so well?” I am often amazed by the depth of insight music therapy colleagues share about their clients during clinical peersupervision. Of course, colleagues from other disciplines I closely work with (e.g. clinical psychologists, nurses, activity co-ordinators) also share clinical insights that are extremely valuable in our review meetings. However, music therapists seem to develop unique insights into their clients’ individual characters and personal strengths beyond symptoms and challenging conditions. I approached Rosslyn Bender, an experienced music therapy clinician working in the national health service for mental health care of adults and older adults in London, UK, and asked her why she thinks music therapists may get to know their clients in such a unique way. She wrote back to explain: “(I think it’s) because the music between a client and a therapist is constantly in motion, therapists have to ‘go with the flow’ without reliance on a clear structure or frame for the interaction. This means we are constantly listening and paying attention to not only what is expressed in space and time but also holding an awareness of what has preceded the moment as well as what may still be possible. In addition, the therapist’s embodied experience of these musical interactions seems to help them to develop a unique sense of and thus deeper understanding of their clients”. Exploring why and how such in-depth “knowing” may happen through collaborative music making is beyond the scope of this Editorial. Nevertheless, this provides me with an opportunity to encourage music therapists to share their in-depth clinical knowledge through publication. During the long-awaited in-person 12th European Music Therapy Conference in Edinburgh in June 2022, the NJMT Editorial Team held a workshop on peer-reviewed publications (McDermott et al., 2022). Our motivations to run this workshop were to encourage new or less-experienced writers to submit articles to NJMT, and to increase the transparency of the publication process. We were particularly keen to encourage music therapists to consider sharing their insights by writing Perspectives on Practice articles. The current instruction for authors related to this genre can be found on the NJMT website (https://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?show= instructions&journalCode=rnjm20). I would particularly like to highlight that Perspectives on Practice articles do not have to be presented as research or theoretical papers. Rather, authors are strongly encouraged to critically reflect on their work, contextualise their reflections, and make appropriate links to theoretical approaches or frameworks. Perspectives on Practice authors do not need to have formal ethical approval if their work was undertaken as part of their usual practice, but appropriate ethical consideration needs to be provided. After discussing with the NJMT Editors, NORDIC JOURNAL OF MUSIC THERAPY 2023, VOL. 32, NO. 1, 1–3 https://doi.org/10.1080/08098131.2022.2152238