So Many Instruments, So Little Time…
by • September 4, 2015 • Uncategorized • 0 Comments
How many different kinds of instruments do you know about?
How many have you seen or played?
Chances are, you know about the instruments in a band, an orchestra, and even in some percussion groups. One thing that I love about being a music therapist is being able to introduce people to different instruments they might have never played. Or maybe it’s an instrument they know about, but, as a music therapist, I have something that makes it possible for them to play.
This post is for you if you’ve ever wondered…
What instruments you might play during music therapy or how playing instruments during music therapy is different then when you play them at a lesson or in band?
A Snapshot of Our Instruments
We have so many instruments here at our clinic that we have to have a room dedicated to just that. It has shelves and drawers full of instruments, music books, pictures, stories, and other props to use in our sessions. The instruments on the piano bench pictured above are what I would like to share with you today. Why do we need so many instruments, you might ask? Or why all the different kinds?
Well, as you might already know, music therapy is different from band, orchestra, instrument lessons, or even just a normal music class. Sometimes we work on learning how to play instruments, but we are doing this to learn or practice functional skills. I will explain the difference a little more with each instrument, however, if you have more questions check out this blog post!
What Don’t You See?
Like I said, music therapy is different from other music groups or lessons. Some instruments that you won’t always see in our office are band instruments, such as clarinets and saxophones, or orchestra instruments, such as violins and cellos. Although we love these instruments, and some us even play them, they are not always helpful during music therapy. Also, we do some traveling and have to carry our instruments with us. It would be pretty hard to carry all the instruments for an orchestra out somewhere in my little car… no matter how much I would love to sometimes.
Introducing…
…the instruments! On and around the piano bench in the picture above are 4 instruments that you might see when you come to music therapy. Some you might know, some you might not. I want to introduce you to them, and tell you just a little about how we use them during music therapy.
- Boomwhackers: These are an instrument you might have seen at school. They are super fun to play; they are just plastic tubes that are different notes. You can use them to play different melodies or to create chords while singing a song. If you have done either of those with boomwhackers at school, then you might be surprised to know that we also do that with them in music therapy, too! During music therapy we can use them to help learn sequencing or to work on team work in group sessions.
- Castanets: These are the small circular instruments that you see on the piano bench.We also have some fish shaped ones as well. They are used in a variety of European cultural music and are played by squeezing the two sides of the castanets together to make a clapping sound. During music therapy we use these to help with fine motor skills, such as finger dexterity and strength.
- Kazoo/Train Whistle: Who doesn’t love a good kazoo or train whistle? These are fun to play and I’m sure everyone has played one or the other at least once. You might even have received a kazoo in a goodie bag once or twice. During music therapy we will use these to help work on breath support that is needed for speech.
- Egg Shakers: These instruments are fun for many to play! They come in all different colors and can be played by shaking them… as the name suggests. We can use these to work on fine motor skills (such as picking things up), gross motor skills (such as moving arms up/down/around body), or more cognitive skills (such as color identification). Egg shakers have many different uses in music therapy!
