Vol 4 No 2 1990
Published: Fri 1st June

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Journal Articles:
Dynamic Interplay in Clinical Improvisation (p5 - p9)
view abstract
When a therapist and patient/client are actively engaged in improvising music together, the potential exists for the development of an intimate and dynamic emotional relationship. The improvisation reveals both players' capacity for forming, expressing and communicating dynamic forms of feeling, within the context of this music relationship. This paper examines the concept of dynamic forms, with recourse to the literature on mother-infant interaction, and applies this concept to clarify the use of clinical improvisation in music therapy.
Music Therapy and Elective Mutism: a case discussion (p10 - p14)
view abstract
This paper describes individual music therapy sessions with a 20-year-old man with specific communication difficulties manifested as inappropriate behaviour and elective mutism in his daily life. It shows how music therapy was a particularly relevant treatment in the context of the Unit where he was being helped. It illustrates firstly how aspects of play can be embraced in the therapeutic relationship, and secondly how problems can be worked through in the experience of both musical and non-musical interaction. The therapist uses a psychodynamic viewpoint in her understanding and interpretation of the sessions.
The Use of I and Me: music therapy with an autistic child (p15 - p18)
view abstract
This paper provides an account of three significant stages in 18 moths of music therapy with an autistic child, Rosa, whom I met when she was nearly two and a half years old. First I introduce her, summarising my understanding of "autism" and the role of music therapy: the approach in psycho-dynamic, influenced by Klein, Winnicott and Tustin. Then I give a detailed description of a session six months after we started working together. I conclude with an interpretation of the change in our relationship a year later. Four autistic features emerge: (i) destruction and negation followed by repair and affirmation; (ii) confusion of zones; (iii) infantile sexuality; (iv) a sense of emptiness.
Music and the Mentally Handicapped: The Effect of Music on Anxiety (p19 - p26)
view abstract
This study reports the effects of music on the anxiety and agitation of four women with moderate and mild mental handicap. Music therapy and recorded music were compared with a control condition using controlled case studies. Two measures of anxiety were recorded - pulse rate and a behavioural rating. No improvement was found under the control conditions, while both music conditions produced some improvements. Variations in the pattern of responses to each form of music are discussed.
Book Reviews
The Creative Process, Part 1: Applications in therapy and education Edited by J. Houben, H. Smitskamp, J. te Velde - Reviewed by Helena Newsom (p27)
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