dee sweeney interview

7/31/2019 Dee Sweeney Interview

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Interview with Dee Sweeneyby Carolyn DealDee Sweeney, CCM has directed the Clinical Musician Certification

Program since 2007. She brings her experience as a clinical

musician, trainer and learning strategies specialist to the program. She is also an NLP practitioner and has knowledge of

efficient and enjoyable ways to memorize music.

Dee, many harpers are excited to discover a clinical musician program that isaffordable and can be done at home. In what ways does this training benefit aharper most?The Program is self-paced so that harpers, vocalists or other appropriateacoustic instrumentalists can start where they are and create a studyschedule to fit their own lifestyle and objectives in their own home. Somestudents want to complete the Program as quickly as possible or during a

sabbatical; other students want to be ready for a career change as they nearretirement and have a longer-range objective.

How experienced a harper does one need to be?Both budding and proficient musicians and harpers alike are welcome. TheProgram provides a course of study that is accredited by the NationalStandards Board for Therapeutic Musicians.

Tell us an especially meaningful experience one of your students has hadwith bedside harping.A student played for a fellow hospice volunteer named Jan, on the 20th

anniversary of Jan's husband's death. Jan told her that every anniversary wasvery difficult. At the end of the session, she said the music was perfect - itallowed her to weave in and out of memories and communication with herhusband and to have a perfect and peaceful closure, knowing all was well.

And another one?I am one of the luckiest people in the world to be able to work with ourstudents and support them on their journey into therapeutic music. I get tohear these amazing stories. Here's another one. Sue was playing for a patientwho had had shoulder surgery. The patient ranked her pain at 12 on a 1-10scale. When Sue entered the room, this patient was not due for more pain

medication for at least an hour. Soon after Sue started playing, the patientrelaxed her breathing and dozed off. The woman awoke as Sue left andremarked that she had no pain.

How should we go about choosing a harp for therapeutic playing?Size, range, tone, and, of course price, are critical considerations in choosinga harp:Size: How big and heavy of an instrument can you manage - moving it from



home to the facility and back, and from unit to unit? While some therapeuticmusicians are fortunate enough to play at a facility that has purchased a harp,most of us need to provide our own harp - which means moving it severaltimes a week. My primary harp, when I started this work, was a 33 stringdouble strung floor harp with rich tone. I found that the moving process was adeterrent to getting out the door, both because of its size and its weight.There are a lot of options. There are new, extremely light yet full-size carbonharps, and that would be a breeze. Or double strung harps or lap harps andharps you can strap on. I downsized to a 23 string, double strung lap harp formy bedside work. It has magnificent tone for its size and I can stay aroundmiddle C with both hands. I have the added benefit of the bell-like quality ofdoubling, and I don't run out of strings like I do on a small single strung harp. Ican put it in the overhead rack of standard aircraft when I travel. I alwaysencourage my students to at least consider a double strung harp, eventhough it won't suit everybody. I loved having the full range of the larger 33string, but I do not miss the moving hassles!

Range: An ideal string range would include the C below middle C and about 2½ octaves above. There are several harps now being made that meet thesecriteria, have very nice tone and offer several price points.

Tone: For therapeutic work I would look for a harp that has a rich and mellow"warm" tone, versus a sharper sparkly "bright" tone. Mellow is easier on theear when one is in pain. It needs to be pleasing to you as well. But as youknow, a harp is a harp, and part of the tone is dependent on the skill and careof the harper. If possible, try out several harps before choosing one. Price:Fortunately there are now many harps to choose from. And very often youcan find a used harp that will provide you with good value for the dollar.

You use the Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) Thinking Model of the waysthe brain likes to process information and you apply that to memorizing andretaining music. Is there one thing you can share right now to help us?The NLP Thinking Model tells us that where your eyes unconsciously look (upleft or right, to your ears, left or right, or down) is a reflection of the kind ofinternal processing you are doing. For instance, for most of us, we naturallylook up and to the left when we access our visual memory. It is really usefulto engage all your senses, visual, auditory and kinesthetic, in learning music,but visual memory is particularly useful. NLP also tells us that the fastest wayto affect our internal process is by changing our physiology - where we look.

A very simple way to engage your visual memory is to raise your music standso your eyes are in visual memory position - for 90% of the population this is(fortunately for harpers) up and to the left. When I first studied NLP, I did notuse my visual memory when learning music. I became a true believer when Iexperimented with changing the position of my stand and found that I wasable to "see" the music I was working on in my visual memory - withoutstruggle and effort. In my workshop, I'll teach more tricks to more easily learn



and retain music.

As far as learning to play therapeutic music, what's a common mistakebeginning musicians make?One of the therapeutic music styles requires a very steady but relaxed temposuch as would mimic a heartbeat. Beginning musicians often play without asteady beat and a smooth rhythm, especially if they are self-taught. Often, thefirst time they "get it" is when they listen to their own recording and try to taptheir foot to the beat. Using a metronome is helpful, but they first need tolearn to listen to themselves.

What is something an intermediate might overlook?Therapeutic music should be relaxing and flowing with gentle dynamics.Often, when students play a tune at pulse tempo (50-80 bpm), they aresuccessful in playing with a steady and appropriate beat; however the tune isstilted and without feeling. One of the best ways to address this is to havestudents listen to their own recording with specific questions in mind.

What about advanced players?Advanced players are often also performers. Therapeutic music is theopposite of performance - it is service. Our music is simple and relaxed(there's that word again!). A big challenge for advanced players is to shelftheir virtuosity, simplify what they play (less is better), and divert from thepage to the point that a selection may become virtually unrecognizable.Complex music takes an enormous amount of mental processing by thelistener. The listener should not have to expend any energy or attentionkeeping up with the music we provide.

How can we improve the effectiveness of practice time?Work in chunks, slow down, breathe. Record yourself and listen on thoserecordings. And all the other "spot-on" suggestions your other intervieweeshave been sharing over the last several months.

Share a simple exercise you like to do... something we can go do at ourharps right now...Margot Krimmel shared this one with me and I love it. It helps me get into thespace of my harp (be here now), to breathe and relax, and to really listen tomy tone. This is not an exercise to develop finger dexterity, so slow down.Notice your state (Are you relaxed, tight, worried, etc?) Using finger 2 (index

finger) of your right hand, play from middle C to G in the octave above middleC and back down to middle C. Each note gets 4 slow beats (1-Mississippi, 2-Mississippi, etc.). Take your time and really listen to each note. Repeat withthe left hand an octave lower. Using fingers 2 and 1, repeat the same notes,giving each note 1/2 beat. Just place each 2-1 without doing cross-undersand overs. At the top, play the F-G, then replace your 2nd finger on F, andcome back down to middle C. Repeat with the left hand. Using 4 fingers,



repeat the same notes, giving each note ¼ beat. At the top, play the D-E-F-G,then replace the F-E-D and play. Again, no cross-overs or unders. Noticeyour state. I bet you're more relaxed and present and you've noticed animprovement in your tone.

What is satisfying about playing music at the bedside?I am able to connect more fully with my harp, my music and myself and offermusic from that space. It's no longer about getting it right. It's rewarding tosee the pain lines drain from a patient's face, or notice his breathing relax andbecome regular - and then he falls asleep.

What kind of live support is included in your home study program?Several things. We hold periodic conference calls open to students andgraduates that address topics of interest. There is usually a 20-30 minutepresentation or demonstration, followed by a question and answer period.The calls are recorded and available for later listening for those who have aschedule conflict. Participants love the opportunity to hear the perspectives ofother Program participants and we all get great ideas and inspiration.Students and graduates also connect with each other through Googlediscussion groups available through our website.

Are there mentors?Yes. Each student has an assigned mentor for email and phone coaching.The mentor's job is to support the student in successfully moving through theProgram. This might range from organizational support, being a point ofaccountability for the student, providing feedback during internship, and/orcoaching on therapeutic repertoire styles and development. The type ofsupport provided just depends on what the student needs. And a student canalways set up a personal meeting with his or her mentor if they are fortunateenough to live close by or travel to the area. Our mentors are experiencedtherapeutic musicians and graduates of our Program, so they know thechallenges that go with independent study.

What spiritual aspect of life do you think is most affected by playing a musicalinstrument as a therapeutic tool?It's different for different people. I am more connected to Source as a result ofmy studies and work.

Do you think harpists need to go through a training program prior to playing at

bedside?Absolutely! Training is important, whether it's through my program or anotherone. Before I started this journey, I had played at the bedside of some friendsand their pain lines went away, their faces relaxed and they fell asleep. So Iwondered what there was to all this training business.Little did I know the richness of the journey that lay ahead when I finallystarted my therapeutic music study. I learned about the science behind



therapeutic music, why the simplicity of the music is so important, the basicmusic styles and how to match the music I play to the patient's condition. Ilearned to relax, slow down, breathe, let go of the page and improvise - allincredible gifts to me personally. Training gives us a new level of awarenessand many tools to use so that we can be of optimum service to others.

What do you see as the future of the harp in healing or therapeuticapplication?The resonance of a harp makes it a perfect instrument for this work, althoughvoice and other acoustic instruments are also very effective. I see more andmore hospitals and hospices recognizing the value of live therapeutic musicto their patients, their families and the care team. Staff members are alwaystelling us that our playing calms the whole energy level in the unit, helps themthrough really stressful times, and helps them provide better care. I also thinkwe are increasingly recognizing the different ways that music can be used inhealing. We are more open to networking and sharing knowledge, we arebeing increasingly professional in our approach, and we are more aware ofthe big picture. In addition to offering appropriate music, I think we have anongoing role and responsibility as educators and advocates about the role oftherapeutic music. Hopefully, all of these things will lead to increasingopportunities for trained therapeutic musicians to become paid members ofthe healthcare team.

What is your website so we can learn more?www.HarpForHealing.com

Is there a website that has general information about therapeutic music andtraining programs?Yes, one site to check out is: www.therapeuticmusician.com . This is thewebsite for the National Standards Board for Therapeutic Musicians.

dee sweeney interview

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