Music Therapy Must-Haves

12/04/23

As Kelly finds herself with one foot in the clinical music therapy world, and one foot in the Ph.D. world, she has been pondering what to write about. As she reflected, she realized that she has been talking to a lot of the music therapy students about functional items all beginning music therapists need. Since the holidays are right around the corner, and parents are looking for gift ideas, she thought this might be a good time to share her top 5 favorite things as a music therapist!

A sturdy carrying bag! My absolute favorite is: Basic Beat Large Tote Bag This bag is designed with a music therapist in mind! There are large pockets for shape drums and/or books, smaller pockets for rhythm sticks, or bells/shakers, and straps that will hold mallets in place. In one bag I can easily carry a set of SoundShapes, Ocean Drum, large cabasa, 50 egg shakers, 10 bells, 10 sets of rhythm sticks, a set of scarves, and an assortment of other shaker instruments---and it doesn’t feel super heavy!

A guitar! Most music therapists will need to provide their own guitar, and this really comes down to personal preference. As I have been in the field for almost 20 years, I wish I would have gotten a 1. Smaller guitar (1/2 size or ¾ size) 2. One that will withstand the conditions where I live…4 seasons I would consider getting a guitar that can be plugged into a sound system.

Scarves! Scarves are a magical prop! They float, they are easy to move, they are engaging, and they are appropriate with just about everyone! (And they are very easy to carry!)

An iPad! As a beginning music therapist, I used to print songs and put them in my song binder. Binders are HEAVY! With an app like OnSong, music therapists can start their own digital song libraries, sort them into “sets”, and search for keywords at the touch of a button. Gone are the days of flipping through binders to find the one song that you know exists but can’t seem to easily find! With Wi-Fi, music therapists can easily download songs in the moment, use a subscription music service to play the music live, or use the ipad to create and/or record music in the moment. It’s a very handy tool.

Egg Shakers! Versatile, easy to use, and relatively inexpensive….egg shakers are a must have! Egg Shakers But I also really enjoy the Wooden Egg Shakers, especially as I work with older adults and sometimes the bright colored egg shakers are just too much.