Abstract
This paper is based on an assignment conducted for a graduate music therapy course which included interviews with Prof. Dr. Sumathy Sundar and Aastha Luthra, both music therapists currently practicing in India. It is a compilation of personal communications and writings from Prof. Dr. Sundar and Luthra, with some additional background from Dr. Sangeeta Swamy, on the history, current role, and future of music therapy in India. It acknowledges the effects of colonization; outlines current music therapy educational practices, theoretical orientations, methods, instruments, populations, and settings; honors the cultural diversity of this complex country; and highlights the personal role that music can also play for music therapists. In addition, this paper seeks to increase the dialogue regarding both the challenges and sources of hope in building the future of music therapy in India.
Highlights
This paper is based on an assignment conducted for a graduate music therapy course which included interviews with Prof
This paper is based on an assignment completed in the fall of 2018 for a graduate music therapy course at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, which included interviews via email with Prof
Dr Sumathy Sundar and Aastha Luthra, both music therapists currently practicing in India
Summary
Because India has been repeatedly invaded and colonized by other countries during the past 400 years, it is vital to acknowledge the effects of colonization in order to understand and effectively work with and learn from the perspectives of individuals from India. The British colonization, from the mid-18th through mid-20th centuries, has had a pervasive influence on the diverse culture of this country During this period of colonization, Indian farmers were heavily taxed, which Swamy (2017) informed us “[depleted] the country of resources such as spices, teas, and textiles and [contributed] to famines and mass starvation. The British had instigated violent conflict between Hindus and Muslims, which led to “partition” and the division of India into the separate countries known as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh (formerly West and East Pakistan). This resulted in forced migration, the loss of property, and even more animosity between individuals from these cultures. The effects of this period of colonization continue to resonate within the extended families of Indians today, influencing everything from language to the economy to music (Swamy, 2017)
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