MUSIC-THERAPY PRACTICE IN NEW-YORK-CITY - A REPORT FROM A PANEL OF EXPERTS, MARCH 17, 1937

On March 17, 1937, a panel of music therapists, psychiatrists and a co rrections specialist convened to discuss the use of music therapy in N ew York City hospitals and correctional institutions. The conference w as sponsored by the Federal Music Project, a New Deal white collar pro gram that employed thousands of out-of-work musicians during the Depre ssion. Programs of the Federal Music Project were carried out in urban areas and isolated rural areas. Music education and music therapy act ivities, though less numerous than orchestral, opera, and choral perfo rmances, were conducted in community centers, settlement houses, orpha nages, hospitals, and prisons. The panel discussion on music therapy w as part of Music Education Week 1937, in which numerous presentations and demonstrations celebrated and promoted the beneficial influence of music on the well-being of men, women, and children. The afternoon of Wednesday, March 17 was devoted to a discussion of music therapy. Eac h presenter contributed his/her personal view of how music could effec tively be used with the sick, indigent, and incarcerated. Although the presentations were uneven in quality and in two cases very brief, it was apparent that strong support for music therapy existed in the New York City metropolitan area during the height of the Depression.