The Modern Idea of Creativity and its Influence on Music Therapy

Abstract

In recent years, improvisation has been recognized as one of the most important tools for music therapy. Several accounts have been made concerning the importance of improvisation, each from a particular music therapist’s point of view. In this essay, my objective is to consider how modern, Western ideas concerning improvisation have informed the practices and philosophies of music therapy. I begin with a comparison of traditional Japanese ideas concerning creativity and modern Western conceptions of creativity and improvisation, focusing in particular on the infuence of ‘refexive modernity’. Next I consider the infuence of refexive modernity on improvisation within contemporary music therapy, discussing the psychologized tendencies of modern music and music therapy. I conclude by invoking Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of ‘line of fight’ to advocate for a model of music therapy that connects the music and the individual to something outside as in The Otoasobi Project in Japan and in various non-Western healing traditions.