'The Guitar Doesn't Know this Song' - an investigation of parallel development in speech/language and music therapy

Abstract: This paper has evolved from ongoing research, developed from clinical work which began in January l988 with children attending a Northern Irish school specialising in speech and language impairment (SLI). Drawn from the mainstream school population, these children experience a range of complex and subtle language and speech difficulties. Frequent parallels have been observed between the speech/language development of individual children and their responses within a music therapy setting. Through reference to a detailed study of one boy with SLI, the changing quality and frequency of his spontaneous musical responses are identified, and inferences are drawn which relate to the early development of speech and language. The paper traces a music therapy journey over a period of three years. Clearly defined stages in this process emerge: when viewed in the context of a developmental model, ramifications for a profound, significant musical role in language development become apparent. Common areas shared by client-therapist and mother-infant interactions are well-known; this paper provides an insight into the complexities of these interactions by investigating the relationships from the viewpoint of evolving language. Finally, there emerges the story of one individual's unique responses to another individual. Such stores remain central to all our work. This paper will be published by the BSMT later in l992, price on application.

Note: Northern Ireland

Keyword(s): Investigation, parallel, development, speech-handicap, language-disorder.

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