RGV Music Therapy Literature
Raising music therapy voices in the Rio Grande Valley
Mexican American Values and Therapeutic Alliance in Music Therapy: Case Vignettes from the Rio Grande Valley
Marisa de León, MS, MT-BC
‘’The process of building rapport with clients varies across cultures. There are roles, values, and social expectations that music therapists must be aware of to establish a meaningful therapeutic alliance. As music therapy becomes more accessible along the Texas-Mexico border, we must consider how cultural values present in this community may impact therapeutic alliance with clients and families. The purpose of this article is to describe how familismo, confianza and personalismo values have been observed in the context of music therapy in this Mexican American community and how they have shaped both the therapeutic relationship and the role of a music therapist. Through two composite vignettes, this article seeks to (1) recognize the cultural and psychosocial needs of this community; (2) initiate discourse for a culture-centered framework of music therapy practice in the Rio Grande Valley and South Texas regions; and (3) provide clinical considerations for building therapeutic rapport with clients in this community.’’
Deleon, M. (2023). Mexican American Values and Therapeutic Alliance in Music Therapy: Composite Vignettes from the Rio Grande Valley. Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy, 23(3). https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v23i3.3922
transfronterizx - chapter 2 from “Sociocultural Identities in Music Therapy”
ezequiel bautista, mt-bc
“in this chapter, I explore sociocultural aspects of identity of person, musician, and therapist, reflecting on my time as a student in undergraduate and graduate studies as well as my time as a young therapist. while I can acknowledge that my identities as a person, musician, and therapist are inseparable from each other, it is important to highlight how each has impacted my understanding of myself in the context of a music therapy culture that I inhabit every day. I also reflect on family histories across made-up borders and their manifestations in my growth and way of interacting in and with the world. I present questions and reflections on my time as a music therapist and the complexities that have been present in my roles as a musician, therapist, learner, and human. my intent is to share my perspectives and pose my questions in hope that they may lead to more critical ways of thinking about what it means to be in music with others.”