Robbins, C. (2005). A Journey into Creative Music Therapy. Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Monograph Series, Volume 3. St. Louis, MO: MMB Music, Inc. 70 pages. ISBN 1-581060-34-3. $18.95

Abstract

Robbins, C. (2005). A Journey into Creative Music Therapy. Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Monograph Series, Volume 3. St. Louis, MO: MMB Music, Inc. 70 pages. ISBN 1-581060-34-3. $18.95. A Journey into Creative Music Therapy is Clive Robbins's autobiographical account of his and work as one of the great pioneers in the field of music therapy. It unfolds as a story that chronicles not only the various persons and events that ultimately led to the present day Creative Music Therapy (or Nordoff-Robbins) model, but also the first-hand experiences of a man whose has been a rich tapestry of imagination, adventure, and healing. The book begins with Robbins openly sharing the many musical influences of his childhood. Among them are memories of his mother playing the piano and listening to 78-RPM recordings on a wind-up phonograph. He expresses how these early music experiences provided meaningful ness in an otherwise . . confused and ungrounded childhood (p. 2), and how music filled emotional needs not met by his family relationships. He describes how these early experiences helped draw him to the therapeutic attributes of music he was to discover later in life. Robbins expresses how he was profoundly touched on a deeply emotional level by a variety of music, including that from folk, patriotic, and religious genres. He shares his discovery of classical music through an anecdote featuring a wartime propaganda campaign on the BBC, which he credits with much of his early exposure to the great symphonic works. He explains how classical music for him was indelibly enriching, filling emotional realms that only it could fill. In writing about the experiences of his early years, the author artistically illuminates the powerful role of music in his own creativity. He speaks of being played (p. 3) by music and how it swept (p. 3) into and through him, carrying him with it on journeys of inspiration. He also describes the role of music in terms of his own health. For example, he shares how, during a stay in a rehabilitation hospital after suffering a very serious injury, he . . needed music as I needed air and food (p. 4). Perhaps most fascinatingly, Robbins expresses the lifechanging significance of his passion for American music starting at an early age. He fondly credits much of this music with expanding the dimensions of his emotional life. He describes how he felt a natural resonance with many of the qualities of this music, which he would later rediscover in the musicality of Paul Nordoff who was to become his future creative partner. As the book continues, the author recounts his discovery of Sunfield Children's Home, a community foe developmentally disabled children, which based its care practices on Anthroposophy, a system of principles based on the teachings of Ruldolf Steiner. Robbins expresses how, during his first visit on Christmas Eve, he was moved by the serenity of the community. He writes how the visit transformed his life, and how his desire to be a part of it soon led to him becoming a teacher there. He goes on to write that, as meaningful as his was at Sunfield, he eventually became interested in furthering what he knew of Steiner's work, specifically in regard to practical applications with children who have special needs. Shortly after this time, he shares how he became acquainted with Paul Nordoff, an accomplished American composer who, while on Sabbatical from his academic teaching post at Bard College in the U.S., visited Sunfield to perform some of his compositions. The author describes his experience while listening to Nordoff's performance as being . . the most living and marvelous musical experience of my life (p. 7). Robbins then recalls how Nordoff himself eventually came to live at Sunfield (having resigned his tenured position at Bard), due to his own interest in Anthroposophical thought and practice. The author recounts how his historic partnership with Nordoff began, in large part due to the visionary support of the community's director, Hep Ceuter, who encouraged the use of improvisational music with the Sunfield children. …