Musical themes are the “playing field” for musical interaction in which clients are provided with opportunities to engage and express. Through the creation of themes that are built around the client’s musical, behavioral, and/or emotional cues clients may experience empathy, predictability and feelings of safety that can enhance the relational music making experience. This course explores the intersection between clinical-musical themes and syntax and how they serve as a foundation for providing opportunities for engagement.

This course will provide participants with a practical guide to crafting musical themes with clinical intent. Topical areas include: 1) developing repeatable melodic themes with voice and guitar accompaniment, 2) solidifying themes to construct musical form, such as A-B-A, 3) employing clinical techniques of empathy and elicitation within the musical process of crafting themes, and 4) navigating shifts between client-led and therapist-led initiatives to construct musical form such as A-B-A

Clinical video, demonstration, and experientially based learning will be used throughout the course to illustrate concepts and practice techniques. The course will be taught remotely within a guitar & voice context and thus fundamental accompaniment guitar skills are required. Several major and minor chord progressions will be demonstrated and workshopped as a means of creating A-B-A form.