by Rachel | Uncategorized
I’ll bet you’re wondering what these three things have in common…right? These are the topics about which I learned (along with many other music therapists) at last weekend’s CMTE, Multicultural Music for Music Therapists. The event, held at The Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, was a fabulous collaboration between music educators and music therapists which resulted in an exchange of valuable knowledge.
My favorite aspect of all three workshops we attended was that they were interactive. We didn’t just sit and listen; we played our guitars, drummed, and sang our way through each one. (Okay, everyone else did those things; I was videotaping the entire time. But when I go back and watch the videos, I’ll be participating.)
Not only were the presenters full of energy and talent, but they provided us with new ideas to take into our music therapy sessions. I can’t wait to apply some of the blues guitar techniques we learned, and I know that lots of my students will really enjoy some of the Spanish greeting and movement songs we were taught.
Members of the Illinois Association of Music Therapy had a chance to mingle with Old Town faculty during registration in the morning, throughout the lunch hour, and afterward at an all-participant jam session. How cool is that? Most of us had our guitars with us, so we joined others who were playing fiddle, piano, accordion, harmonica and many other instruments to make some pretty spectacular music.
It was so neat to see such a big group of non-music therapists so interested in learning not only about what we do, but how to apply it to their teaching. This was the first event of its kind that our association has put on, but I’m sincerely hoping that it’s not the last!
by Rachel | Uncategorized
This weekend, my husband and I are both going to be enjoying sporting events at which the national anthem will be sung. The difference is, I’ll be singing it at one, while Zach will get to hear Christina Aguilera’s rendition at the other.
That’s right, folks: my husband is going to the Superbowl.
Not that I’m jealous or anything. I mean, how often do I get the chance to perform the Star-Spangled Banner for our local minor league hockey team? Chance of a lifetime, if you ask me…although the monster truck rally back in high school comes in as a close second :)
All kidding aside, I’m extremely happy for Zach. Football is one of his passions — he’s almost as good at fantasy football as he is at selling insurance. But not only does Zach get to enjoy watching the Steelers vs. Packers; he also gets to enjoy the sounds of Lea Michele, the Black-Eyed Peas, and the aforementioned Christina Aguilera.
He’s promised to take lots of pictures and videos, and in return, I assured him that my mom would record my performance (not much has changed since my childhood). One thing is safe to say: we’re both very excited about our sporty, star-spangled weekends. Go Steelers and Springfield Jr. Blues!
by Rachel | Uncategorized
Yesterday as one of my piano students was leaving his lesson, he said, “Miss Rachel! I heard you on the radio this weekend!”
He was referring to the WDBR Cares for Kids Radiothon, which ended up raising over $102,000 for the Children’s Miracle Network and St. John’s Children’s Hospital. Although I was in Cleveland for the duration of the radiothon, my original songs were played throughout the three-day event.
Last year, I wrote songs about Hollie & Sam — two of the many children whose lives were saved by the doctors at St. John’s and CMN. This year, I chose to write a song from the patient’s perspective; “You’re a Hero to Me” honors those very doctors who go above and beyond to make miracles happen.
Saying thank you
Doesn’t seem like enough,
Finding the words to express the way I feel
Has been tough.
‘Cause every time I think about
All that you did when I was hurt,
The only thing that comes to mind is
One word:
You’re a hero to me,
And my whole family.
For never giving up or losing hope.
You stood by my side,
Comforted me when I cried,
And I know, I know,
You’re the reason I’m alive.
We didn’t know if I’d make it,
To my next birthday,
But you worked around the clock
To take my pain away.
I was scared, but not as scared
As if you hadn’t been there,
You went above and beyond
To show you care.
CHORUS
You were doing your job,
But it was so much more than that,
I never felt like just a patient
With an illness to combat.
CHORUS
I’ll post my other new radiothon song very soon, but before I get to that, I have some gratitude to share. I hope you’ll stop by tomorrow for my third annual “I’m thankful for…” list (here are lists #1 and #2). Until then, enjoy this Thanksgiving Eve!
by Rachel | Uncategorized
Well, my second national conference of the American Music Therapy Association is officially in the books. And what an experience it was! If you follow me on Twitter, you probably feel like you were right there with me in Cleveland — especially if you were actually there.
I used the hashtag #AMTA10 throughout conference to send updates to my Twitter friends, as did many other music therapists in attendance. But 140-character tweets just can’t do #AMTA10 justice, so read on for the entire play-by-play.
The Erfurt Music Resource Booth in the Exhibit Hall, manned by Michelle & Ed Erfurt.
I arrived in Cleveland early, so I had a chance to relax and unpack before meeting up with the rest of the Music Therapy Round Table (Michelle & Kimberly) later that evening. We had a little bit of business to take care of before our CMTE the next day, but mostly we were just ready to catch up in person again for the first time in an entire year.
On Thursday morning, I met Michelle and her husband, Ed, in the exhibit hall to help set up the Erfurt Music Resource booth (see the pictures above). Not only did I have my products on display, but so did a few of my awesome music therapist friends, like Kat Fulton and Wade Richards.
That afternoon, Michelle, Kimberly & I presented our very first CMTE (continuing music therapy education) course, which was all about using the web for music therapy advocacy and marketing. 5 hours of Facebook, Twitter, and blog talk — my idea of a good time! Luckily, the participants agreed; they asked tons of questions and left excited to build and grow their own online presences.
Thursday evening was spent socializing with other conference-goers in the exhibit hall and giving the lowdown on my songbook and CD. I must say, the EMR booth was one of the most hoppin’ in the whole hall!
Friday was a bit more relaxed now that our CMTE was over. The keynote, presented by Alan Solomon and Ken Medema, was absolutely amazing. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the entire ballroom by the time it was finished. The rest of the morning was spent at the exhibit hall, in an excellent session by Tim Ringgold, and having lunch with Michelle and Kat. Later than evening, I joined Illinois State University students, alumni, and faculty for our annual conference dinner. That was followed by the 2nd-ever Tweet-Up, which boasted over 20 participants. Yay, music therapists on Twitter!
The Music Therapy Round Table, hard at work recording and promoting our podcast.
A big part of Saturday was spent, once again, at the EMR booth in the exhibit hall. The MTRT recorded episode 10 right there at the “round table” where I’m sitting in the picture above, and we had the opportunity to interview quite a few fellow music therapists (both professionals and students). In fact, we had so much great material that we ended up splitting the episode into two parts — the first of which will be up on our website and on iTunes soon!
The Tweet-Up gang, Kat & Kimberly, and the State Task Force Reception.
Saturday evening, Michelle and I took a break to blog in the hotel lobby, after which we headed to the State Task Force reception to socialize with other music therapists who, like us, are advocating for recognition in their states. As much fun as we were having at the reception, we had to jet out of there at 8:30 in order to make it to our final dinner of the week…
Delicious food, wine, and wonderful company at Crop, an amazing Cleveland eatery.
Ed, Michelle’s husband, has officially gained the title of honorary 4th member of the Music Therapy Round Table, because not only did he do an amazing job representing us at the booth all week, but he also organized our farewell dinner on Saturday evening.
The four of us sat at the chef’s table at Crop, where we were treated to an 8-course feast complete with wine pairings at each course. We had heard good things about it, but we were not at all prepared for the deliciousness we experienced that night. Kimberly and I were guilty of tweeting our plates and making the rest of our Twitter friends jealous :)
I was a little sad to say goodbye to Cleveland early Sunday morning, but I left with plenty of new friends, memories, and photos. Michelle Erfurt started a Flickr group for pictures taken at the AMTA conference, which you can view here. Better yet, if you were there and took pictures, you can add them!
I’d love to hear about your own #AMTA10 experiences and highlights, so leave them in the comments. Or if you weren’t there this year, let me know that you WILL be in Atlanta for #AMTA11!
by Rachel | Uncategorized
Do you remember that scene in the movie That Thing You Do! when the band hears their song on the radio for the first time? And they get out of their car (in the middle of the street) and jump around screaming and singing? Well that was me last year when I heard my songs playing on my favorite radio station during the WDBR Cares for Kids Radiothon.
The Radiothon is a three day event during which money is raised for the Children’s Miracle Network and St. John’s Childrens’ Hospital, right in my hometown of Springfield, Illinois. Throughout the radiothon, Dave & Dina (the awesome hosts of WBDR’s morning show) interview patients who have received treatment along with their families, and they play songs that accompany several childrens’ stories as they (or their parents) tell them in their own words.
Last year I had the huge privilege of writing two original songs to accompany the stories of Hollie and Sam, which you can hear right here. I jumped at the chance to do it again; this time around I wrote songs for Will & Cookie, who talk about their brother Jack’s experience as a patient at St. John’s, and another song about the doctors from a patient’s perspective.
I will share my songs here at Listen & Learn after the radiothon is over…but until then, you can hear them either by tuning in to 103.7 WDBR (either on the radio if you’re in Springfield or streaming online). The radiothon started yesterday and will go through tomorrow. If you would like to make a donation, you can do so by calling 217-544-KIDS. Last year, over $92,000 was raised, and I’m hoping that can be topped this year!
The bummer part is that I’m in Cleveland for the AMTA national music therapy conference until Sunday, so I won’t actually get to hear my songs played live on the radio. But just knowing they are, and that they are part of such an awesome cause, makes up for it :)
