Medical Music: Anthropological Perspectives on Music Therapy

95 Pages·2015·0.51 MB·English

Georgia State University
ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University
Anthropology Theses Department of Anthropology
12-16-2015
Medical Music: Anthropological Perspectives on
Music Therapy
Stephen McMasters
Follow this and additional works at:https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/anthro_theses
Recommended Citation
McMasters, Stephen, "Medical Music: Anthropological Perspectives on Music Therapy." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2015.
https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/anthro_theses/103
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MEDICAL MUSIC: ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON MUSIC THERAPY

by

STEPHEN McMASTERS

Under the Direction of Steven P. Black, PhD

ABSTRACT
Music-based healing is utilized as a healing tool in many cultural contexts around the
world. This thesis examines the cultural practice of music therapy in the context of the larger
discipline of medicine in the United States through an ethnographic study of music therapists in
the Greater Atlanta area. It contextualizes this data with research in medical ethnomusicology
that explores cross-cultural traditions of music in healing rituals. It also connects music therapy
to the observation that forces of globalization are strongly correlated with an increase in rates of
inequality, poverty, stress, and disease. This thesis discusses how Atlanta-area music therapists
use music healing with patients suffering from physical and mental disease and how economic
stratification impacts access to music therapy. It is concerned with deeper and not immediately
evident processes taking place in music therapy, such as the role of music as a medium and
facilitator in healing.
INDEX WORDS: Medical anthropology, Medical ethnomusicology, Medical pluralism,
Embodiment, Medical discourse, Mental illness
MEDICAL MUSIC: ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON MUSIC THERAPY

by

STEPHEN McMASTERS

A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Arts
in the College of Arts and Sciences
Georgia State University
2015
Copyright by
Stephen McMasters
2015
MEDICAL MUSIC: ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON MUSIC THERAPY

by

STEPHEN McMASTERS

Committee Chair: Steven Black

Committee: Emanuela Guano
Jennifer Patico

Electronic Version Approved:

Office of Graduate Studies
College of Arts and Sciences
Georgia State University
December 2015
iv

DEDICATION
I dedicate this thesis to my mother, the strongest and most generous person I know, and
my sister, whose fortitude and courage inspires me every day. Thank you both for supporting me
in my aspirations and endeavors.
v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank the members of my committee: Dr. Black, for keeping me calm and
focused in guiding me through this process; Dr. Guano, for providing me with feedback to help
me become a better writer; and Dr. Patico, for helping me keep things in perspective. I would
also like to thank the music therapists who enthusiastically gave their time and energy to share
their lives and experiences with me, and especially Jamie, for meeting with me multiple times
and allowing me to spend a day at The George Center for Music Therapy.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................. v

1
  INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1

1.1
  Purpose .................................................................................................................. 2

1.2
  Chapter Summaries ............................................................................................. 4

2
  MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, MUSIC, AND THE CLINIC ............................ 7

2.1
  Medical Pluralism & Medical Ethnomusicology ............................................... 8

2.2
  Discourse & The Clinic ...................................................................................... 10

2.3
  Music Therapy .................................................................................................... 11

2.4
  Embodiment: Healing ........................................................................................ 13

2.4.1
  Shamanism & Trance ................................................................................... 14

2.4.2
  Narrative & Music ........................................................................................ 18

2.5
  Neoliberalism & Structural Violence ............................................................... 20

3
  RESEARCH METHODS AND BACKGROUND ................................................. 24

3.1
  Research Objectives & Questions ..................................................................... 24

3.2
  Research Methods .............................................................................................. 25

3.3
  Music Background ............................................................................................. 27

3.3.1
  Music is “My Jam” ....................................................................................... 28

3.4
  Illness: Aplastic Anemia & Beyond .................................................................. 29

3.5
  Ethics & Obstacles ............................................................................................. 31
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4
  THE FIELD RESEARCH ........................................................................................ 33

4.1
  Music Therapy in Atlanta .................................................................................. 33

4.1.1
  Music Therapists of Atlanta ......................................................................... 34

4.1.2
  Musical Backgrounds ................................................................................... 35

4.1.3
  Experiences with Music Healing ................................................................. 37

4.2
  Skeptics & “Hippy” Medicine ........................................................................... 40

4.3
  Socially Constructed Mental Disorders ............................................................ 43

4.4
  Methods & Techniques ...................................................................................... 45

5
  ILLNESS AND INTERVENTION .......................................................................... 48

5.1
  The Role of Music in Healing ............................................................................ 51

5.2
  Stress, Depression, & Anxiety ........................................................................... 56

5.2.1
  The Family .................................................................................................... 59

5.2.2
  Mourning & Birth ......................................................................................... 60

5.3
  Alzheimer’s Disease ............................................................................................ 62

5.4
  Physical Disabilities ............................................................................................ 63

6
  MUSIC THERAPY ACCESS .................................................................................. 64

6.1
  Demographic & Socioeconomic Makeup ......................................................... 66

6.2
  Neoliberalism & Deinstitutionalization ............................................................ 68

6.3
  Insurance, Waivers, & Grants .......................................................................... 69

6.4
  Lobbying for State Regulation .......................................................................... 72
viii
7
  CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................................... 76

REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 82