Make a Melody Music Therapy

26/03/2025

Our music therapist, Stuart, recently met with Michelle Tennyson (Chief AHP Officer for NI), Janis Scallon (Director of Department of Education), and Lorraine Brown (SEN Reform Delivery Team) to discuss and observe a music therapy project at Donard Special School. This project focuses on providing a collaborative treatment approach involving AHP staff for pupils with SEN, while also building capacity among educational staff members.

The Department of Education have just released their SEN Reform Agenda and several actions within this agenda specifically highlight the use of Art, Music, and Dramatherapy. It was a great meeting and a good opportunity to demonstrate how music therapy can support these initiatives! We're hoping more meetings will soon follow!!

A huge thank you to the PHA for funding this project through the Special Schools Partnership Programme.

12/07/2024

The news is out!! 🤩

We are thrilled to announce that Make A Melody has been selected as a provider for the Counselling Services in Post-Primary Secondary Schools by the Department of Education! We are now the first Music Therapy organisation to be a part of this tendered contract- we are absolutely delighted 😍

So looking forward to expanding our services in schools throughout Northern Ireland!

14/06/2024

The horns in action!! 📯📯

For children with autism, blowing a horn or engaging in similar activities that involve breath control and oral motor skills can offer a huge range of benefits! I've put a few below ☺️

1. Speech and Language Development: Blowing a horn helps strengthen the oral motor muscles, which can be beneficial for speech development.

2. Sensory Integration: Blowing a horn provides proprioceptive and auditory sensory input, which can help a child become more aware of their body and improve their ability to process sensory information.

3. Breath Control and Regulation: Activities involving controlled breathing can help a child learn to regulate their breath. This can be particularly helpful in managing anxiety and promoting relaxation.

4. Focus and Attention: Playing a horn can require concentration and also provide a motivation for sustained attention.

5. Self-Regulation and Calming: The rhythmic and repetitive nature of blowing a horn can be soothing. It can help a child to self-regulate and manage stress or sensory overload.

Overall, blowing a horn and similar activities can provide enormous benefits for children, supporting their physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development. It's a wonderful instrument to use in Music Therapy 📯📯

23/05/2024

Wow, what a wonderful moment in our session!😁Please meet the lovely young Richard who has been attending Music Therapy for this school term.

What's behind the music?

- Sustained Engagement in a Shared Social Interaction: not always easy for someone who lives with Autism, but look how engaged Richard is with the music therapist! As he explores different ways of connecting, this may lead to greater openness and exploration of connecting with his own peers outside of the therapy session.

- Vocal Conversations: watch how Richard uses vocalisations to engage in a musical conversation, how the trumpet is mirroring his pitch, rhythm and tone, showing that the Music therapist is listening, that Richard is heard, and then watch as they enter a musical dialogue building upon his communication skills.

- Connection: we hope this leads to Richard feeling valued, heard, and that he can connect with another person; the hope is that Richard will take these skills away with him outside of the therapy space.

11/05/2024

What do I do in my spare time? Brass Band!! 🎺🎺

I'm a member of the wonderful St Marks Silver Brass Band, and this morning we were competing in the Brass Band Spring Festival. And a wonderful result- we won! Now in fairness, there were only three bands in our section, but still! 😂 A class results 😍

10/05/2024

Just 400-odd pages of a tender contract.. My Friday night reading 🧐 🥱 The joys of running a business!

10/05/2024

Wow! Look at Josh making choices! 🤩 By developing a communication aid with his Speech and Language Therapist Aisling Hanna, Josh was able to expand his range of communication and choice-making. Watch and see how his level of excitement and enthusiasm grows with each choice that he makes- beautifully capturing what increased empowerment and agency can do to your wellbeing!

Also see how Josh stops grinding his teeth instantaneously whenever his choice is fulfilled and the music plays! The depth of therapeutic value in music therapy is just brilliant.

Thank you Josh for attending our sessions, and a massive thank you to his family for allowing us to show you this little snippet! 🥰

08/05/2024

The joy on this young man's face! 😍 Music Therapy has become a great avenue for exploring his voice. Video to come soon!

We are a team of Music Therapists offering sessions in Northern Ireland.

07/05/2024

Allow me to introduce Connie! 🤩

Through working together with Speech and Language Therapist Aisling Hanna, and Occupational Therapist Ciara O'Neill, we were able to give Connie her yes! Which also means giving her an opportunity to say no, which is just as important if not more.

What this may mean:

- Connie can now express consent to those who maybe don't know her as well as her loved ones do
- We hope to have increased Connie's sense of agency, empowerment, and increased her sense of control over her own decisions and actions
- By being able to respond with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’, we hope to facilitate better social interactions with caregivers and peers, leading to a greater sense of belonging and inclusion.

A massive thank you to Connie's family who gave us consent to share her journey today. Thank you ❤️

24/04/2024

My son Will thought he liked the sound of the horns and gave it a go - might need a little help establishing his blow! 🤣 But in fairness, his pitch match was on point! 🤗

24/04/2024

Yay! They've finally arrived!!🎺🎺 Cannot wait to introduce these in sessions! 😍

26/10/2023

This young man does not use verbal communications to express himself, but in the music his musical voice is heard! Watch as he begins to extend his musical expression as he recognises the connection the Music Therapist is making with his music; a beautiful musical conversation unfolds. It is our hope that this young man experienced increased feelings of connection, feelings of being heard, and creating increased capacity for self-expression during this session. A big thank you to his mummy for allowing us to show this video!