ABSTRACT
QUESTIONS about what to do in health promotion and therapeutic practice can be surprisingly difficult to answer. Every initiative is complex and contextualized and invites the examination of a chain of questions about how to do things, with whom, where, and for what reason. To develop and qualify our questions is important, but does not take the challenge of decision-making away. Paul’s question, which we encountered at the beginning of Chapter 7, apparently addressed every relevant dimension: “What treatment, by whom, is most effective for this individual with that specific problem, under which set of circumstances, and how does it come about?” Still, Knut’s simple question-”May we too play in the [marching] band?”—opens up a completely different way of thinking
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When is community music therapy relevant? The theory, research, and practical examples presented in this book give some answers to this question. A myriad of questions remain unanswered however, and it is critical to stimulate more research in this direction. In our appraisal it is equally crucial to consider how we address the question of relevance in the context of practice. One seemingly waterproof approach will be to assess what the best approach would be in every unique case. The challenge is that when we examine this we are necessarily positioned within a social, cultural, and professional context. If we assess the needs in every case we encounter, it makes a difference whether we do this from a clinical position within a hospital or from a position in a community music school, for instance. Similarly, it makes a difference whether we start with examining problems or resources, or whether we start with individuals or communities, or some combination of these. Our appraisal is always colored by our position and informed by certain perspectives. This is part of the human condition. We can acknow - ledge this and try and improve our judgment by searching out more than one perspective on practice.
