Most used instruments in Music Thrapy
- Stef Tepper
- Mar 18
- 3 min read
The instruments we use in music therapy can hold a lot of meaning. The choice of instrument and the way in which it is played is unique to each person; it can allow a person to express themselves and their internal world, something which may be difficult to access in traditional talking therapies. In music therapy, we think a lot about the timbre (sound quality) of the instrument, whether it has melodic/harmonic possibilities, rhythm, the potential for volume contrasts and articulations (sustained or detached sounds). We also consider how the instrument feels: is it smooth/textured? Can you pluck strings or press down keys? Can you make interesting sounds by scratching, blowing, tapping etc... I often consider each instrument I use with different clients depending on their emotional/sensory needs. Here are some of my favourite instrument to include in a therapy session:
Guitar/ukulele
The guitar is a wonderful all-rounder. It can be uses as a melodic, harmonic, rhythmic and percussive instrument. It has great sensory capacity through the vibrating strings and the amplification of the sounds as they pass through the body. As a portable instrument, it can be taken round the room, moving with the young person in songs such as ‘this is the way we walk/jump/stomp around the room’. The guitar can be played and enjoyed with no prior knowledge as the open strings sound beautiful and harmonious together making is a highly accessible instrument. I love to accompany songs and nursery rhymes on guitar or ukulele and have supported clients with a variety of physical complexities to play some of their favourite tunes.
Steel Pan
The steel pan creates what I like to think of an artist’s watercolour palette of gentle, soothing sounds. This is a lovely instrument to use if a client is feeling less confident about using the instruments in the session as it can be played very quietly with minimal effort but provides a musically sophisticated sound world. This instrument combines beautifully with instruments such as the flute, piano, ocean drum or wind chimes. I have also found the weight of the metal pan effective as it can provide regulating proprioceptive input.
Train whistle
This is a very small and unassuming looking instrument but it always makes a big impact! Blowing through the top of the whistle re-creates the sound of a an old fashioned steam train’s horn. I have used this instrument to create stories of going on a train journey with different station stops along the way, each stop representing a different memory in a young person’s life, to allow a young person to direct the start/stops in music and to help facilitate a musical conversation for clients who may be pre or non-verbal.
Drum
One of the most popular instruments in my sessions is the drum. Drums can come in all different shapes and sizes; from small, tambourine style drums to large floor djembes. The idea of a drum, however, is always open to interpretation and I’ve experienced the walls, floors, tables or even our bodies being uses as ‘drums’. Drums are wonderful as they provide us with pulse and rhythm. I like to think of a pulse as a binding agent, a musical gravitational centre that seems to draw everything else to it – it’s very hard not to play with the beat! A pulse can provide a containing structure for young people who might tend to play in a more chaotic way and rhythm can add additional complexity to a simple melodic line, if appropriate. I have used the drum in a turn-taking exercise, to represent rumbling thunder in a sensory story or as an accompaniment to a song or melody.
What instruments would you like to see in your music therapy sessions? Let us know in the comment below!
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