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AndrewsMommy
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| Posted: October 19 2006 at 7:16pm | IP Logged
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Has anyone ever tried music therapy for their ASD child who seems gifted in, motivated by, naturally inclined towards, interested in...music, rhythm, dance, etc.? I think my son has perfect pitch. He sings quite a bit. He can reproduce different notes, sounds, songs, jingles, etc. Also, my great uncle was a gifted pianist who never took a lesson and in his later years tuned pianos by ear. My nephew is 11 and writing his own music after less than 2 years of lessons. Almost everyone on both sides sings in tune. Maybe music is a niche skill (or splinter skill) for my son...or maybe he just inherited some musical talent!
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AndrewsMommy
6 yr old, Classic Autism with sensory issues
"Knowledge is Power"
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xiangnong
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| Posted: October 21 2006 at 8:18am | IP Logged
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That is great and sounds like something you should definitely encourage. (My son definitely doesn't have perfect pitch. I learned this when I made the mistake of letting him hear "Jingle Bells, Batman smells... )
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Blessed mom of one 7 year old boy with PDD-NOS
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mom2andrew
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| Posted: October 21 2006 at 7:25pm | IP Logged
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Hi, Andrew's Mommy...........another Andrew's mommy here, and I feel the same way about mine: I think he has perfect pitch, or at least great pitch memory, and he can sing anything (and does!)
DH and I are music teachers, so this is fascinating for us to watch. Andrew loves to dance as well as sing, and he also does a lot with play instruments we have around the house. Thankfully, we got him into an arts-infused magnet school, so he has lots of exposure to music, dance etc which is wonderful for him.
I love the idea of music therapy, and have often wondered recently if maybe I should have gone into it myself. It certainly would be (now) a wonderful marriage of two things I'm most immersed in...........helping someone with special needs through music, what could be better? Before Andrew, we never knew obviously that our lives would take the turn down this particular road (ASD). But if I had known, I probably would have done a music therapy degree instead of music ed.
Hoping someone out there has actually used music therapy, though, and can tell us more about the good it did. Cool topic!
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Jennifer
Mom to Andrew, born 8/2001, diagnosed PDD-NOS in 2005
and Ethan, born 3/2004, former micropreemie and NT
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Karolysgirl
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| Posted: October 22 2006 at 6:03am | IP Logged
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music bump
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AndrewsMommy
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| Posted: October 22 2006 at 3:58pm | IP Logged
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Thanks so much for the replies thus far!
It's a challenge to find information on this topic. I have been researching for over a year but have yet to find someone close by. I have contacted the AMTA (American Music Therapists Association), and there are several members in Virginia, but no one is closer tha 4+ hours! Hopefully someone on these boards will be able to help!
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AndrewsMommy
6 yr old, Classic Autism with sensory issues
"Knowledge is Power"
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SueB
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| Posted: October 23 2006 at 5:57pm | IP Logged
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My son with autism (about the middle of the spectrum) is 18 and has been doing music therapy for about the past 2 years. We live in Southern California so I unfortunately can't recommend anyone to you. We had tried it many years ago when we lived in New Jersey and Peter, my son, was just 4 but he didn't really respond. So we stopped and decided to try it again when I heard about the program here at the music department at California State University at Northridge (CSUN). They have a great program, with young, energetic therapists plus students since they teach music therapy at the school. If you have a university or college near you, maybe you can ask if they have a program?
Anyway, Peter has also always been musical. He was humming in perfect pitch years ago when he lost his speech at 1 1/2. Once he started speaking again around age 4, he would sing, but not with a group. The other kids and teachers would sing, then when they stopped, he would sing his perfect rendition. He was always drawn to sounds, but seemed sensitive to certain pitches. Sometimes a song would come on the radio and he would cover his ears and moan and we had to turn it off.
We wanted to try music therapy a couple of years ago because Peter seemed to be avoiding listening to music more and more. He didn't want to listen to any CD's like he used to. We wanted to encourage more language thru music since it seems to be a natural outlet for him. When Peter is sad or hurt, he will cry and sing thru his tears. We had bought him an electric keyboard and we knew he could pick out tunes by ear because he would do it when pushed, but he didn't enjoy it.
I'd like to be able to say that music therapy has been a miracle cure, but of course nothing is. As usual, it's one more thing that can help and it does seem to be helping. With Peter, progress tends to be slow. He does enjoy listening to music more and will tolerate more on the radio. He will sing along with the music therapist (which is a good accomplishment for him) and can read music a little. He plays the piano with her and also plays the drum interactively with her. The method she uses is like a cross between Floor Time, ABA, and more natural teaching. She has a set structure to the session, with a consistent beginning, middle and end, but changes around some elements in the middle. Peter has also learned to like and play the bass guitar a bit so now he has a bass guitar and also an electronic drum pad at home. I need to encourage him to play them, but when he does, he enjoys it. I see him enjoying interracting with his therapist and I see that for him music can really help with that.
I hope this information helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.
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Sue
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AndrewsMommy
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Thanks Sue! I'm glad that your son has an outlet for his musical talent, and I hope he can build and expand upon this interest to improve other areas of his life.
I'd like to know where you lived in NJ? My mother lives in South Jersey, and I'm originally from Philly. There seems to be alot more help for children with autism in NJ than in VA, so maybe a move is in our future...
Thanks much!
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AndrewsMommy
6 yr old, Classic Autism with sensory issues
"Knowledge is Power"
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SueB
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| Posted: October 23 2006 at 8:17pm | IP Logged
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We lived in Morris Plains, in Morris County. There are alot of really good private schools in New Jersey, but they're a little slow at starting programs in the public schools. We're planning to move to Union County in March, 2007 and will try to get Peter into a program that's run by the public school district, but is just for kids with autism.
Many people do move to New Jersey for the services, but I've heard that some of the districts are getting annoyed by the flood. When they have to send so many kids to private schools it's very expensive. Then the districts that are known for being very accomodating about sending out of district start their own programs in their public schools. That can be a good thing, if they're done well.
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Sue
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AndrewsMommy
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| Posted: October 25 2006 at 9:30pm | IP Logged
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Anyone know a good music therapist ANYWHERE IN THE USA?
Bumping!!!
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AndrewsMommy
6 yr old, Classic Autism with sensory issues
"Knowledge is Power"
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calblank
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| Posted: October 27 2006 at 4:25pm | IP Logged
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Hi! My name is Carol Ann Blank, and I am a music therapist here in Central NJ. I am very glad to hear that so many of you feel that music is an important part of your children's lives. I would be happy to serve as a reference point for anyone who has any other questions or is looking for a referral for a music therapist in their area. The NJ Association for Music Therapy is an active organization, albeit without a web presence of yet. However, you can reach the NJAMT at NJassociationformusictherapy@gmail.com.
I hope I can be of some service!
Sincerely,
Carol Ann
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Carol Ann Blank, MMT, MT-BC
Board Certified Music Therapist
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Autism-PDD Message Boards : Autism Education Issues
Topic: Music Therapy
