MU 545 - Composition for Music Therapy Practitioners

Prerequisite

Must be admitted to CSU's Music Therapy master's degree program.

Description

Students have the opportunity to explore their own composition and improvisation skills as they relate to facilitating music therapy sessions. We explore topics in music theory, composition, and improvisation, and incorporate those concepts into our own compositions and improvisations. Music recording technology is also explored in this course.

Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• improvise and compose music that facilitates functional objectives.
• use composition to facilitate movement, speech and language, and other functional skills.
• develop creative music skills inluding musical play, melodic improvisation, harmonic improvisation, and playing in different meters and styles.
• record compositions utilizing computer programs.
• generalize learned techniques into clinical practice.

This course can be applied towards:

• Music Therapy (M.M.)

Textbooks and Materials

Textbooks and materials can be purchased at the CSU Bookstore unless otherwise indicated.

Required

• Additional readings posted on RamCT or in CSU Library Electronic Reserves
  Not available at the CSU Bookstore
• Improvisation: Methods and Techniques for Music Therapy Clinicians, Educators, and Students (2004)
  Wigram, Tony
  ISBN: 978-1843100485
• Songwriting: Method, Techniques, and Clinical Applications for Music Therapy Clinicians, 1st Ed. (2005)
  Baker, Felicity and Wigram, Tony
  ISBN: 978-1843103561

Students are required to have access to high-speed Internet and a web browser. Students must also have a method for recording mp3 or mp4 files.

Instructors

Blythe LaGasse
(970) 491-4042
Blythe.LaGasse@colostate.edu

Blythe LaGasse is Assistant Professor of Music Therapy at Colorado State University. Dr. LaGasse received a Bachelor of Music in music therapy from the University of Kansas, and a Master of Music in music therapy from Colorado State University. She completed her doctorate in music therapy at the University of Kansas. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses and is Director of Music Therapy Clinical Practicum.

Her clinical background includes working with persons with autism and developmental disabilities, with an emphasis in speech and language communication. She has contributed to several music therapy texts including "An Introduction to Music Therapy: Theory and Practice" (3rd ed.) and "Introduction to Approaches in Music Therapy" (2nd ed.). Dr. LaGasse’s research interests include the effect of auditory stimuli for motor synchronization in children and the use of music therapy for development of speech in children with neurological and developmental disabilities.