Theo's Elective Journey by theo krause

Area - Music Theory (20 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-30 23:35:06 UTC

As my music theory knowledge was lacking compared to many of my peers, I enlisted the help of my colleague, Sonja, who studied musicology for her undergrad. We studied chord progressions, modes, and functional and non-functional harmony. These skills helped me in my studies and will help me in my future work.

Area - Deutsch für therapeutische Berufe / Deutsch für den Beruf (20 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-30 23:48:29 UTC

In preparation for my internship, I took extra German language courses, registering for three in the second semester. It prepared me for the learning I would be doing in Dortmund to understand the inner-workings between departments in the clinic as well as helped me be more social with the young clients with whom I was working.

Area - NMT Training (20hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 00:07:28 UTC

This was an incredible experience in Hamburg which I was thankful a few of my colleagues were able to join in on. We learned from NMT's founders, Michael and Corine Thaut and met other music therapists from Germany and around the world. I am continuing my education in the US in a Neurologic Clinic which uses these methods, so it was excellent time spent.

Area - Digital Music (20 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 00:52:14 UTC

Whilst in internship with teenagers, they were always interested in the electronic music instruments we had in our therapy room. As a DJ, I get requests to know how and what I am doing frequently. I combined these two ideas and decided to teach a course for my colleagues to practice my instruction techniques for later therapeutic settings. It was fulfilling and filled with learning takeaways like how to manage a group with different musical backgrounds and how to guide individuals of different cultural backgrounds musically.

Area - Neurological Internship (20 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 01:13:22 UTC

I wanted to test out my acquired NMT skills in a German clinic to gain cultural understanding as well as understanding of how NMT works in an actual clinic. I saw the difficulties of working with non-verbal patients and those in more palliative care. This was good for me to see as I know I could not work long-term with these populations. During this short internship, I was also able to work briefly with an addict population which broadened my horizons and showed me that this is another population which I would like to work with in the future.

Area - Meditation (8 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 08:39:55 UTC

Mindfulness has been shown to be a key component in mental health and well-being. As such, I participated in a meditation session and discussion led by my colleague, Armin where we focused on concentrating on a single flame and allowing all of the other stimulus to come in and pass through. This technique helps with concentration and focus in thee therapist role. It can also provide for a sound mind in a difficult work environment.

Area - Dance Movement Training (6 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 09:03:40 UTC

I looked forward to working with my colleagues Buse (somatic dialogue) and Rangi (Interaction) to understand their work and another modus of CAT. I found the concept of listening to another individual's body to be fascinating since there was no verbal exchange. There were moments of significant emotional expression during these non-verbal exchanges. It was also wonderful to see a professional guide a large group through uncomfortable movements and positions through careful choices in group management. This support was admirable and will be something I hope to replicate in my practice.

Area - Empra (3 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 09:14:10 UTC

I participated in Juee's and Yunnie's Empra projects. Both were DMT intervention-based which allowed me to see a new side to Creative Arts Therapies when looking at stress and difficult emotions, respectively. This will help me to think bigger than just Music Therapy in my CAT practice.

Area - Community building/Dance (3 hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 09:38:02 UTC

I went to Juee's Invitation to Dance course in December of 2023 and saw how she was able to build a safe space for a varied group of individuals who had limited experience to a lot of experience with dance and movement.

Area - MT Research (3 Hrs)

theoreticalmusique — 2024-07-31 10:22:05 UTC

I participated in Eun-Mi Ko's Thesis research project. She tried a new intervention on me which dealt with improvising on my current mood and target mood. We discussed afterward for another hour. After, there was additional follow-up questions which resulted in another 45-minute time block.