This is where all of my interests and skills are combined for one purpose: to make peoples’ lives better through music. Whether it’s through my original songs, serving my community through my business, or singing with my children, this is my favorite place to share my musical endeavors. Thank you for visiting, and I hope to get to know you better.
Performances
Events
Videos
Members of Listen & Learn Plus have access to ALL of my songs, resources, and session plans. Learn more about the perks of membership, and get a free sneak peek inside.
This is the book that will help you shape your music therapy career in order to make more money and live your ideal lifestyle.
Written by Listen & Learn Music creator Rachel Rambach, MM, MT-BC, Innovative Income for Music Therapists combines her own experiences with those of other trailblazing music therapists to illustrate the virtually endless ways in which to generate revenue using your unique training, knowledge and skills.
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Holiday & Winter Parachute Songs for Children
The parachute is one of my favorite props to use with children of every age, but especially my early childhood groups. It seems novel to them every time we get it out, and there are so many different ways we can use it to address a variety of important goals while having a lot of fun at the same time.
During the holiday season, there are two songs in particular that I pair with the parachute. I wrote them specifically for this reason, though they also work well with the stretchy band, which I use when we don’t have quite enough hands to manipulate the parachute.
read more…Listen & Learn at Thanksgiving Time
Listen & Learn provides unique, fun, and goal-oriented music that can be used in so many different settings! At Music Therapy Connections in Springfield, we offer Listen & Learn classes that specifically utilizes this material.
I have had the privilege of teaching some of these classes each week. I primarily teach Listen & Learn for Little Ones, which is for children ages 0-3 and their caregivers. I also teach Listen & Learn a Little More, which is for children ages 3-5. Our classes typically run in four-week sessions. Each week during this period makes use of the same material because repetition is so valuable!
read more…Teaching Children to Give Thanks
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year! I love being able to reflect on my life and really appreciate all that I have. I also love being able to discuss this with the children that I make music with. I believe that even young children can begin to understand what it means to be thankful.
Being thankful and giving thanks are HARD concepts. It usually takes a bit of explaining so that my clients and students can truly understand the meaning of both. Incorporating a song like “Give Thanks” into my November music therapy sessions is the perfect way to begin a discussion about all of the things we can be thankful for.
read more…Taking the Unconventional Route
I knew even before I started my music therapy education that I was going to take the unconventional route. I’d already had plenty of practice at that, having completed my undergraduate education as a vocal performance major 3 semesters early in order to graduate and pursue my training as a music therapist.
read more…Pumpkins, Performances & Planning a Book Launch
Those 3 “P”s basically sum up the month of October for me! It’s been a busy one, between all the Halloween-related activities for my children, gigs I’ve played, and of course, the book I’ve been working on for the past 6 months.
Heading into October, I was worried about being able to accomplish everything I needed to do in between all of the events on my personal and professional calendar. Just opening the calendar app on my phone has been scarier than any Halloween movie — it’s packed with kids’ birthday parties (at least one every weekend!), school-sponsored events, local performances, family outings, mini deadlines related to my book, and of course, all of my responsibilities at my main gig, Music Therapy Connections.
read more…A New Adventure!
A little over 4 years ago, Music Therapy Connections (my private practice and music studio) found a new home at 1234 Centre West Drive. My co-owner Katey and I were convinced it was meant to be when we first took a tour of the building; the layout was absolutely perfect for our needs.
Not only was the layout perfect, but so was the location. Our families commented on how convenient it was, and it also happens to be the exact midpoint between Katey’s house and mine. It’s also right down the street from our bank, Walgreens, and Starbucks (you know, the essentials!).
For the first two years, we shared the building with an eye doctor clinic until they moved out, leaving the other half of the building vacant ever since. It’s been nice having the common restrooms and parking lot all to ourselves, but our current landlord listed the building for sale, so we worried a day would come when a new owner would want our space for his or her own use.
read more…Pick a Pumpkin (Song) or 2
I love incorporating seasonal themes into my music therapy sessions and music classes, and autumn is a special time of year where there are so many choices for themes to bring into my work! A few of my favorites are back to school, foliage, apples, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and of course, pumpkins!
With the incredible number of songs about pumpkins in the Listen & Learn Music catalog, it’s about time I wrote about all the ways we can bring the theme of pumpkins into music therapy sessions and music classes. Below, I’m highlighting my favorite pumpkin-themed songs!
read more…Self-Care Check In
As I shared with you at the beginning of September, I’ve been prioritizing self-care this month (with no plans to stop doing so anytime soon). To be completely honest, this has been easier said than done; I have a LOT on my plate right now, and at times it is temping to let my self-care practices slide in favor of completing other to-dos on my list.
I’m thankful that I was able to take part in Ami Kunimura’s 5-Day Self-Care Challenge this week, which provided me with support and accountability as I focused on practicing self-care. The daily videos and exercises helped me dive deeper into why self-care is so essential in my life right now, and I loved getting to hear from the other challenge participants as they shared their insights each day.
Many of you expressed the need to prioritize self-care in your own lives right now, which is why I am so excited to share that enrollment for Ami’s 31-credit CMTE experience, RESILIENCE OVER BURNOUT: A SELF-CARE PROGRAM, is open now.
read more…How to Survive Your First Year as a New Professional
Being a new professional isn’t easy. I remember those days vaguely…mostly because I wasn’t sleeping very much and working super hard for my new clients and students.
Right now, many music therapists and music teachers are getting into the swing of their first school year, so I felt inspired to pass on some of the wisdom I learned while in their shoes, braving the world as a new professional.
read more…Unapologetically YOU
This is my 4-year-old daughter, Mia Belle. I couldn’t help but take her photo before she headed to soccer practice earlier this week, mostly to capture the unique outfit she had carefully curated just for the occasion.
If you know me in real life, then most likely you’ve heard the dramatic tales of our daily battles to get dressed and ready for school each morning. To put it lightly, Mia Belle is…selective when it comes to her clothes.
She wakes up with a strong opinion about what to wear that day, completely disregarding whether or not it is appropriate for the weather or situation (e.g. the sparkly bracelet, long plastic beaded earrings, and Superman headband she’s wearing in the pre-soccer photo).
I used to let her stubbornness get to me, and our morning struggle put me in a funk nearly every day. But recently I decided to loosen my grip, because I finally saw what was really happening here. She wasn’t purposely trying to antagonize me; she simply wanted to express herself.
read more…