Kimmo Lehtonen

Reflections on Music Therapy and Developmental Psychology

The purpose of this article is to set new light on the origin of the human musical experience, through the developmental theory that combines the developmental theories of Jean Piaget and Sigmund Freud. The main idea of the article is to show how an individual could move within the different developmental phases and modalities of thinking in relation to music. One could move from the logical thinking of everyday life to the archaic thinking of the unconscious andvice versa. The basis of the article is the theory that musical and psychic occurrences are isomorphous. According to that theory music is a psychic process, and has its origins in the states of tension within man appearing in sonant-acoustic form through the ear. This means that music is an external, perceptible manifestation of that inner process; a kind of process that individuals use to transform the inner i.e. physical not lingual experiences of meaning into external audible form. The article handles the forms of music as means of achieving p...

Castles made of sand – a psychodynamic interpretation of Jimi Hendrix's life and music

Jimi Hendrix (1942–1970), the greatest innovator of electric guitar, made primitive, extremely powerful music, which was a turning point for psychedelic rock music. The authors investigated Hendrixs biography and music for hidden meanings, and analysed ballads about a mystic female figure. Hendrix compares the idealized mother figure to the Virgin Mary, capable of almost anything. Presumably the most meaningful factor of Hendrixs song writing was the mother–child relationship. Hendrixs early life was traumatized by poverty and his parents’ severe marital problems. His mother suffered from pneumonia and alcoholism. Her traumatic death influenced Jimis song writing throughout his life. He often composed his music under the influence of psychedelic drugs. The method is existential-phenomenological because it interprets the traumatic life events behind Hendrixs music. According to psychoanalysis, music expresses psychic events which require processing. In this approach music has an autobiographic meaning. It is similar to composer biographies where music is seen as documents through which we can understand life and significant experiences. In the music therapy approach used, a therapist learns to understand the patient through his/her expressions and identifying with them. Hendrixs musical sounds and symbols talk directly to the subconscious. It is obvious that Hendrixs extraordinary creativity seems to compensate for the severe traumas of his early life.

The Relationship Between Master Music Teachers and Master Students: Counseling Concerns

The relationship between the music instructor and the pupil has only been superficially examined. As advanced students in music become even more talented and sophisticated, they need increasingly greater amounts of individual attention from accomplished musicians and instructors. As students hone and sharpen their skills, they need increasing amounts of attention, supervision and nurturing from their master teachers. This paper explores the quality of such a relationship and other specific concerns such as the need for counseling, mentoring and consultation.

Music as a Treatment Channel of Adolescent Destructivity

ABSTRACT This article discusses the theory, and practice, of music therapy in the treatment of institutionalized adolescents. Music is seen as a treatment modality which may reach emotionally disturbed teenagers and traumatized individuals.

Gifted education: Some considerations as we approach the year 2000

As we approach the year 2000, gifted education will assume greater prominence in education. This paper discusses some of the issues related to giftedness, with regard to: Mentoring, The Gifted and Brain Research and Technology and Computers.

Is there Correspondence between the Structures of Music and the Psyche

Abstract: The basis of the article is the theory that musical and psychic occurrence are isomorphous. According to that theory music is a psychic process, and has its origin in states of tension within man which appear in sonatacoustic form through the ear. This means that music is an external, perceptible manifestation of that inner process; a kind of «process of externalising the internal» (1) that the individual uses to transform his inner i.e. physical, not lingual, experiences of meaning into external audible form. The article handles also problems of intentionality and time in music, music as metathought and the forms of music as means of achieving psychic harmony and the symbolic process as the canon of psychic and musical integration.

Music as a Promoter of Psychic Work

The article describes the music therapy process of eight–year–old Kate whose exceptional sensitivity opened to the therapist a new kind of view of understanding music. Of an extensive amount of material from Kates (six-year-long) therapy process, this article is based on one specific session where Kale told a story about the 5th part – Witch Sabbath – of the Fantastic Symphony of Hector Berlioz. Kate s story is connected in an astonishing way to the original program of the symphony but especially to its subtexts, which were J. W. Goethes Faust and the revelation of St. John of the Holy Bible. Writing about Kate s case for the first time 20 years ago, I first interpreted the case by using concepts of the object relationships and symbolic process based on Freudian theory. 1 later found that it could be better explained by combining theories such as the flow–experience explained by Csikszentmihályi and Csikszentmihályi (1988), Jungian synchronicity, and the concept of “Khora” explained by Kristeva (1969).