Music therapy in Slovakia: Contexts and current practice

Abstract

Music therapy has its own historical roots in today’s Slovakia. As early as the 18th century, information about music healing had already appeared. Nowadays, music therapy is becoming more widespread in our country. Therefore, it is deemed important to clarify music therapy as a contemporary profession and to focus on current events. This article focuses on the historical underpinnings of music therapy as well as the current situation, legislation and personalities who strongly influenced the development in this area, as well as organisations and providers who played an important role in music therapy developments in Slovakia. The article also provides basic information about my own research, presenting findings of a survey questionnaire and two brief interviews with music therapy experts in Slovakia.