Editorial for the Festschrift on the occasion of David Aldridge's 60th birthday
Fachner, Jörg
Contribution to the Festschrift for David Aldridge in celebration of his 60th birthday - From Konrad Schily
Schily, Konrad
The Wind of Change
Neugebauer, Lutz
Tony Wigram - an appreciation of David Aldridge
Wigram, Tony
Happy Birthday David!: A short message that has been a long time in the making - from Simon Gilbertson
Gilbertson, Simon
To David Aldridge 60th birthday - from Gerhard Tucek
Tucek, Gerhard
Ode to David
Magill, Lucanne & Ricciarelli, Alessandro
A common language for therapy processes - A retrospective of David Aldridge's early studies
Fachner, Jörg
Publications from David Aldridge
Download Festschrift as PDF (260kb)
Editorial for the Festschrift on the occasion of David Aldridge's 60th birthday
Fachner, Jörg
Being honoured for having completed sixty years of life is not really a pleasure for somebody who still feels like 23, who sees numbers as indicators of material change only, but internally still feels absolutely unchanged.
When we made Jazz club music together for the audience of the European music therapy congress in Finland in 2004, this was certainly one of those very special moments that demonstrate inner timelessness. Not to mention the rehearsals prior to our performance. But unfortunately the external time, or chronos, progresses in not quite the same way as internal time ... And in addition to all those rather uncomfortable aspects of growing older, there is tradition - tradition coupled to the place where we have moved our ageing bodies from A to B for a period of time. In Germany it is a time-honoured academic tradition to celebrate a scientist on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday, for what he has presented to others to read and discuss in the course of his academic life. This ritual in recognition of achievements and competencies permits all those who accompanied the scientist in question for some part of the way to pay homage to him as friends and colleagues. Most of us find anything smacking of personality cult rather unpleasant - unless you are a rising young pop star, for example. Those to be honoured are more or less embarrassed, and those who want to pay their respects to David in the current context have the understandable fear what they say might sound like a funeral oration. But this is definitely not the intention nor tenor of this Festschrift, which deliberately has not been given the form of a printed book with publications of things often heard; this Festschrift is in electronic form and thereby illustrates what David has always suggested as a splendid opportunity for the documentation of art therapies, that is, the complexity of arts and therapeutic work expressed in multimedia forms of documentation.
This Festschrift is short and personal. As a research assistant at David's Chair of Qualitative Research in Medicine over many years, I am the only one to have made an attempt to summarize some of his earlier publications, articles that I found inspiring and intellectually stimulating. The number of persons who have sent their contributions is only a small part of all who could have contributed something if I had been able to contact them all.
May all readers enjoy this Festschrift, and to you, David: Happy Birthday!
Rust never sleeps ... may you stay forever young!
Jörg Fachner
Contribution to the Festschrift for David Aldridge in celebration of his 60th birthday - From Konrad Schily
If David Aldridge had not found his way to Witten/Herdecke - it does not bear thinking about what we would have missed. First encounters between the university, the Institute of Music Therapy and David occurred almost 25 years ago.
Even in those early days David revealed a willingness to support something quite extraordinary, specifically his intention to secure recognition for arts and "art in therapy" within the reductionist world of academe, in other words, to establish them on a rational, i.e. scientific basis.
At that time David had completed a doctorate in philosophy and was active as a social scientist and social psychologist. Rachel Verney met him in connection with the Nordoff-Robbins Centre and invited him to Herdecke as a guest lecturer. The Herdecke team then asked David for active involvement in the training of music therapists and the creation of a research department.
During his first visits we spent occasional long and late hours in discussions, when David explained his ideas and visions for music therapy research as a form of qualitative research that proceeds not from large randomized populations but rather from the individual patient or basically from the physical or mental impairment itself. Incidentally he made plans how to shape the university, of which he had very clear ideas - even on details of architecture for a campus.
Nevertheless, a number of obstacles prevented an understanding between David and the university at that time. It was due to the persistent efforts of therapists, among them Lutz Neugebauer and Dagmar Gustorff, that David finally came to Witten /Herdecke.
Today, almost 25 years later, David may look back on impressive personal achievements. He was the mentor for many doctoral candidates and not only for graduates of music therapy. Witten/Herdecke has become the focus of music therapy research, and it is essentially due to David Aldridge that a database and website has been created that can be accessed worldwide.
David has taken those singular qualities of music therapy further. Paul Nordoff was the highly talented and extremely empathic artist. In cooperation with Clive Robbins he developed music therapy to a methodological system that could be taught. David Aldridge and the excellent therapists at the Institute have taken up and expanded this approach and ensured that the methods involved and the results are available to experts and interested individuals all over the world.
I wish to thank David for his original and truly pioneering work, and I am pleased to see that his life work will be honored in this Festschrift.
Dr. Konrad Schily
Dear David,
I have chosen the title from the lyrics of the world-famous Scorpions song. This song was about to climb the charts when we started our common endeavours, it accompanied us in the development of music therapy research, training and practice and it seems to be an everlasting motto of a way that we went for the past twenty years.
We were introduced to each other at the Hospital Herdecke in 1987. A colleague of ours, Rachel Verney, who was one of the co-founders of the German Nordoff-Robbins study programme, had got to know you in a project in London. St Marylebone church had converted its crypt into a treatment centre, desiring to bring together medical care and complementary methods of treatment. You were involved there, coming from your background of healing ministry and research methodology, to look at this project in terms of research development, already a recognized researcher in complementary medicine with a high reputation. Rachel Verney told you about the Herdecke community hospital - which at that time was the host of the Medical Faculty and thus the music therapy programme of the University Witten/Herdecke. In one of your first meetings with Konrad Schily he asked you to develop a research strategy for music therapy within the University. You developed this plan with the staff members of the music therapy department of the Hospital and the University to serve the purposes of a developing University and foremost those of music therapy.
You were employed as a research advisor to both University and Hospital department. You had to suffer through numerous theatre visits, concerts of rock and pop music as well as professional meetings, having virtually not a single word of German and being told that this is what you will need to develop. I can say that everybody's language capacities have improved through the recent years. I am able to write in English, you are able to communicate in what you yourself modestly call `a sort of German', to tell the truth, your German is excellent.
You committed yourself to cooperate with us for five years, giving a clear guideline: Develop academic qualification in the staff as a first step. We were all trained musicians, had post-graduate training as music therapists but - in the eyes of a researcher - there was a lot of potential. Our problem was that we were overloaded with work, running a training course, setting up structures for our work to develop and keep on working as music therapists. So your first and wise advice was: Find time to read or rather: Take time to read. Because it was clear to you that we live in an ecology of thoughts and knowledge that we would have to take into account for a professional development.
With a change of our dean you underwent the "wind of change" yourself. Although already qualified with a PhD you were 'kindly requested' to write another scientific work which would formally qualify you to become a Professor in a German University. Looking at this demand from today's point of view it seems a bit outdated not to recognize an academic qualification from another EU member - and certainly it was at that time. But: out of this work, which you completed quietly and with the rigor that you demanded in your first lecture of what you think a researcher needs, stems a book , Music Therapy Research and Practice in Medicine " which I had the pleasure to translate later on. This book published in 1996 - it was not your first one - is a landmark of change in your work as it is entirely focussed on music therapy. It shows your dedication to the work of music therapists and may still serve as a map to unknown territory for those who want to learn about research as re-search or `Wissenschaft' as `Wissen schaffen' (create/produce knowledge).
Many of the ideas presented in this piece of work built the basis of what has developed up to now in our own place and elsewhere. In addition to this work you were one of the external reviewers to a EU programme on complementary medicine. A reputation that you gave to the University and the Music Therapy Department, without this being recognized in both organizations at that time.
All your endeavours throughout the years were - to my recognition - guided from basic convictions that were congruent to those of a holistic medical approach and founding ideals of the University that were alive in the 80s and 90s. Those are:
Bringing together arts and science I am proud that you have taken me as a model for a music therapist from time to time. You wrote lots of articlesand I still wonder how one person writes faster that another person can read - but still, this ratio between my reading and your writing made you aware that music therapists would need books with contextualising illustrations in them. You created a book series "KAIROS" which brought together your own aesthetic approach, your knowledge that people - even scientists - would like books that are attractive to read, and that science needs to serve the purpose of people.
Knowledge needs to be spread. And since we found out that music therapy is easier understood when it is heard than when it is written about, you developed - alongside with this book series - a publication platform using new media. The CD ROM series which published Data base material as well as written articles and case study material was distributed on international conferences and made the University Institute known world-wide. In an early publication about the potential of new media in medical education your CD ROM was used as an example of best practice. Nevertheless the charity withdrew after the pilot phase and your work underwent another change. "The wind of change blows straight into the face of time" sings Klaus Meine. The University was not able to fund your excellent and widely recognised ideas and you had to bring it back to a level that you could handle yourself with the staff available. Supported by the Nordoff/Robbins Charity we were able to keep things going till we found another donator. Supported by the Stiftung Software AG you were able to take this pioneering work a step further. Along with further book and article publications you were able to develop the multimedia publications further into the website "Music Therapy World" (when you were planning this I didn't even know what an e-mail is...) which, to present state, contains a database with thousands of references, PDF versions of music therapy articles from journals which cannot be found in medical databases, and case study material from all over the world.
Even if I describe this as your work, it shows one of the most prominent character traits of yours. You are able to bring people together to share their work and trust into the good will of another person.
Apart from the website which also developed into an international online journal "Music Therapy Today", further there were a series of practice and research symposia, your involvement with the organizing committees of national and international music therapy conferences as well as numerous invitations to medical, anthropological and research conferences tell this same story. Although you obviously have a very fine reputation you never kept this to yourself. You used it to develop our profession, to support your doctoral students and to build bridges between music therapy and other disciplines. Your wide background was a mind opener to many colleagues of my generation and it still is. You are never shy to tell me if you think that a brilliant idea of mine is cramp or even worse - if you hand out an article that you have read ten or twenty years ago, with exactly these ideas. Or even an article that you have written giving an overview over the last fifty years of publications on the same subject.
This leads me to the second basic character trait that you recommended for a scientist (apart from rigour which I referred to earlier on). In your first lecture you advised us to be humble with our own ideas. They never are only our ideas and it is not us who make us brilliant but a person who recognizes what we do, and this can be another colleague, another scientist, a donor, a child or a patient who responds to what we offer.
You have been strong in developing your ideas, rigorous enough to stick to you conviction. Time has proved you right more than once. Ideas do not always stick to the person who has them. They have to go out to become true and in the end they abandon their origin. Thus it happened with some of your ideas and I have learned an important lesson from you: ideas are only good, if reality proves them right. Sometimes we have to give them away, actively let them go and give up what we think is important to let ideas blossom. We cannot keep what we think is ours. This is - as I think - a great gift, especially in times of change.
We are in a continuous process of personal, professional, and institutional challenge. Our work has been part of this process, with changes in professional bodies, institutions that we work in, the scientific community, approaches to what is seen to be needed. There is only one continuity in that I take myself through all these changes - I hope in a learning and developing manner. To keep one's identity in these winds of change - sometimes called storms of life - stick to an idea that I am convinced to be right, seems from your example a good explanation for the word Professor. To profess what you stand for even though it makes times tough.
It is this attitude that helped you to develop what I have outlined. I am more than thankful to be able to say that I have been working with you through all these years and it would be untrue to hide that you (and we) have often been criticised, sometimes for not being cooperative, for not being flexible or adaptable to change, for not being compatible with strategies of other people or of institutions. On the other side of this we can see your membership in e.g. the Royal Society of Medicine, in many scientific boards and in various editing boards of journals, we can see am enormous number of books not only published but also read and articles quoted.
I am convinced that all this is partly due to your rigor, partly to your humbleness but as I experienced it, it is foremost due to the fact that you enjoy your work. And if you do not do so, you have a good recipe: either you change it or you look for the enjoyable parts. I know that you enjoy working with people, and if work doesn't work you still enjoy people. And as all people continuously change, you must enjoy change. Sometimes we have had a little too much of it but we are still going - looking back at twenty years of working with you I am looking forward to our future work. I know that we will have a lot of fun, laugh a lot, cook together, go out with people we like and support each other in our individual and professional times of change.
An Open Letter to David on his 60th Birthday - from Gary Ansdell
Congratulations! Happy Birthday!
My contribution to this wonderful collection has turned out a rather strange hybrid: part letter, part essay, part reminiscence. I hope this is permitted for an e-Festschrift! I guess so. Forgive too the fact that it starts out more about me, then gradually gets around to you (`what's new', you'll say!). Again, this was how my thoughts unfolded about what I wanted to say to you. It also reminded me of that bit in Bateson that I remember you quoting with such relish: his version of the Turing Test, where you type into a computer `Are you conscious?' and eventually it chugs a read-out which says `That reminds me of a story...'
The story I want to tell this time begins in Greenwich in 1985. I was living in a lovely old house with a view of the Cutty Sark from the bathroom window. On the corner of the street was a lovely second-hand bookshop, and during that year I bought three books that changed my life: a small blue book by Nordoff and Robbins called Therapy in Music for Handicapped Children; Oliver Sacks' The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat; and a biography of Gregory Bateson (who I'd never heard of, but he seemed interesting - I underlined the sentence "the pattern which connects"). These three books were like golden pieces of a jigsaw: in their separate ways they began the journey of connecting together my thinking (and more) about music, people, art and science. They also connected strangely to our future relationship.
Just six months later I found myself on the Nordoff-Robbins Diploma training course in London, and not much later out on the coal-face doing the job (a few days of which were at the St. Marylebone Healing & Counselling Centre, where your name was still mentioned, though you'd recently left). On the training course there was a small library, consisting of only about fifteen books on music therapy itself. None had much intellectual weight, or much connection to current thinking in other disciplines - I was sadly concluding at that point that music therapy was simply something you did, and you had to go elsewhere for thinking about it (or thinking from it). In a way this proved true - but as things worked out I didn't need to go too far away (either physically or symbolically).
Help arrived in the form of Rachel Verney, who challenged both my doing of music therapy and my thinking about it in her characteristically transformative way. Through her I then met you. I remember sitting in the courtyard of Rachel's home, Piggotts, planning with her and Lutz how I'd do the second year of the Herdecke music therapy training programme: I'd be supervised by Rachel on clinical work in London and be supervised by you in Herdecke on the academic work and dissertation. This worked out, and in the next year I came over to Germany to work with you about four times I think. I vividly remember the first of these meetings. I'd had a big build-up to you from various people, and finally we met over coffee and cake (with Dagmar & Lutz) in the old Institut fur Musiktherapie, which was (reassuringly) in an old shack on the grounds of the Herdecke hospital. You were younger than I'd expected, ruder and more fun! Your office looked over the `horse therapy' building and was often plagued by horse-flies! We did a few unkind impersonations of Sybil, and then talked about music therapy, the Nordoff-Robbins tradition and its relationship to the anthroposophical tradition of the Herdecke hospital and university, and of the plans for music therapy research you were currently developing.
One is seldom aware when an influence on another person, in a particular hour, is crucial. But David, this was one of those hours for me (cemented subsequently by your work with me during the next year, and your inspiration and help in the years that followed). On that first visit you gave me a bound copy of drafts of recent articles you'd written on music therapy (I forget the exact ones, but they were `thinking out' of your work with Rachel - on music therapy assessment, work with cancer patients in relation to ideas about pathology and form). I hardly slept that night after speed-reading these. What I saw in your work was exactly what I feared simply wasn't in music therapy: here was thinking both from and about grounded music therapy work; here was linking to other discourses and disciplines which could help such thinking about music therapy work; here was also evidence of a person who could listen, look and wait for phenomena and connections to reveal themselves - not a quick attempt to force things into a box of received theory. In short, this first initiation into your thinking was a revelation to me of the possibilities of attending-to, thinking-about and re-searching music therapy in serious ways. This attitude has inspired, guided and sustained my own work in the last 15 years.
As I've got to know you better David, it's been interesting to see where this originality came from: your varied training and experience across the arts and sciences; your blend of artistic and scientific sensibility, your inspired links between bodies of knowledge, or between the simple facts in front of you in a research situation. I'm just reading a rather quirky book on Goethe (John Armstrong's Love, Life, Goethe: How to be Happy in an Imperfect World), where Goethe is described as having "a connectivist style of attention". I think this true of you too David. Not `what?' but `So what?'.
Between 1989 and 1994 you taught me much. I spent a very formative period during 1993-4 working as a music therapist at the hospital in Herdecke, doing music therapy with a wide variety of patients, having conversations with you and your colleagues at the Institut (newly moved to the new university site), and writing my first book, Music for Life. I can remember my excitement at what you were creating there then: a vision of music therapy research that was a broad and imaginative one - happy to link music therapy to medicine, complementary medicine, spirituality and the developing forms of qualitative research. Undergirding this was a respect for the phenomenological tradition that was (then!) the value system of the hospital and university - derived through the anthroposophical intellectual heritage from Goethe's so-called `qualitative science'. Within our conversations we linked this to (what I can see now) are my original preoccupations contained within my three `Greenwich books': Nordoff and Robbins' gentle empiricism and pragmatism - seeing how music, people and spirit connect; Oliver Sack's existential vision of pathology and potential; Bateson's ecological vision of the `pattern which connects'. There were of course frustrations in this anthroposophical milieu: but despite occasional weirdness and dogmatism, here was being modelled in everyday work a parallel track to the mainstream European scientific tradition - a `road not taken' (Goethe's instead of Newton's); here was a tradition we both innately believed was crucial - a `delicate empiricism' that looked and listened and waited for the phenomenon to reveal itself, but also saw the need to link out of pure description to the `pattern which connects' to other forms and traditions of knowledge. This was a very different `ethic' of theory-building and research than I'd come across previously (and since!) - one that takes the time to explore and understand, rather than simply accepting the phenomenon `as given', and then just test it out in order to provide `the evidence'. In all of this, David, you have been a model for others to learn from. You have overall, I think, a discerning intellectual `nose' for what will be interesting to look into, and then for the sometimes tangential connections within and across disciplines that can weave the shape of the whole.
You have been generous, David, not only with your many, many ideas, but in your time, for those of us over the years who have needed dialogue of the right level to help shape our ideas and practice - to hear in the echo of conversation with you whether a current idea is made of tin or a better metal. `Mentor' is an over-used (and mis-used!) word these days, but I believe that you have offered valuable mentoring to many of us. Mentoring doesn't mean (as in business-speak today) just helping someone, but it should describe the spiritual dimension of being able to see in a person what they themselves can't (yet) see; to see (and help you to see) what you can be, can do. I feel that you, David, and your ideas, have mentored me at crucial times in my career - and for that I shall always be so grateful.
I'm sure I'll be one of many in this Festschrift to want to tell you how your influence within music therapy has allowed a thousand professional flowers to bloom - practically and intellectually. You may not like or approve of all of these, but that's the down-side of genuine mentoring - you don't get to choose how your influence propagates!
When I think of you, David, I think of that Bateson story about a story - "that reminds me of a story". I think of the rants I've heard you make over the years to people who say that the best evidence in music therapy is "just anecdotal". All good knowledge is a story I hear you say. And what I think, overall, is your real gift to the profession, and to the personal development of the hundreds of people you've influenced across many vocations, is your unique discernment in regard to which stories need to be told. When I think of you, David, I think of a man who trusts stories - and reminds me to trust them too. Thank you!
For David Aldridge on his 60th birthday. - from Denize Grocke
My first memory of you David was back in 1992-1993. You were the Keynote Speaker at the Phenomenological Inquiry seminar organised by Warren Lett at LaTrobe University in Melbourne. I remember clearly that my first impression of you was an auditory one - your distinctive accent! There is something very engaging about your voice that reminds me of England´s green and pleasant lands and, I must admit, the odd television series. Along with the engaging voice, I also recall the distinctive stroking-the-beard phenomenon which of course was in perfect accord with the wisdom being spoken by the voice. I recall you speaking about music therapy research back then and feeling quite proud, being a music therapist myself amongst a crowd of nurses, psychologists, and art and dance therapists.
My next recollection of you was at the Norfa conference in Denmark. It was just before "Out of Silence" was published, and it came at the very best time for me as a PhD student myself, struggling with qualitative research methodology. Since that time you have set a Guiness record in publications - your books and your articles covering diverse areas of music therapy practice have been a God-send to the profession.
I recall the music therapy conference in 1995 (maybe 1996) when you were Keynote Speaker at the Australian Music Therapy Association conference in Melbourne. The Conference Dinner featured a Samoan dance troupe, and the leading lady sauntered up to you and managed to coerce you on to the dance floor. What a moment!
Then there are the personal moments and experiences of being with you: I recall walking through Rickett´s Sanctuary in Melbourne with Gudrun and yourself, and the beautiful photographs you took of the sculptures. And I recall lunch at Miss Marples and hours of scintillating conversation.
This may be the time to mention other attributes David! First, you have been an advocate of all the creative arts, not only music therapy, evident in your editorship of the Arts in Psychotherapy and the wide range of PhD candidates you supervise at Herdecke. Second, you have created a web site that enables people throughout the world to access material that is inaccessible via other means. This is such an important contribution to music therapy for those people around the world who otherwise do not have direct access to information. MusicTherapyWorld is a fantastic site and is a wonderful contribution to music therapy.
Congratulations to you on reaching this significant milestone in your life. And grateful thanks for all that you continue to do for music therapy, and for the wonderful memories, personal and academic, that I associate with you.
Best wishes
Denise Grocke
Looking back over the years, I can see how my path has crossed many times with David Aldridge, and that he has been a quite significant influence on me, particularly as a researcher, and also more specifically as a research supervisor. First I must say how many enjoyable and often humorous times I have spent with David, and his down to earth. Midlands humour is a delight!!
My first encounter was when David as working together with Rachel Verney, and together with her visited me in my department at Harperbury Hospital in England. This was in the early 1980's, and David was exploring potential areas of research and was very knowledgeable about improvisational music therapy and the Nordoff-Robbins approach. I was certainly not well informed about research at that stage in my career progression as my primary focus was on clinical work and clinical responsibilities. I remember being very impressed with David's knowledge and enthusiasm.
Perhaps it was because of that I felt David would be a high quality `judge' when I presented my thesis in psychology for examination to St. Georges Medical School, London University. David posed the first question when I walked through the door to my defence of a thesis on Vibroacoustic treatment. He looked at me and said "What I want to know is... how does it work"!!! Well, this left me completely nonplussed - as I thought how could this person have read my thesis and NOT understood how it worked. But David was both very perceptive, and also able to cut straight to the point. He was right - I had explained a lot of research results, but the underlying explanation for the physiological effect was still quite speculative. He had put his finger right on the point, and I remembered this some years later when I was working to build up the PhD programme at Aalborg University in Denmark.
David worked with us in Aalborg for several years during the late 1990's and the early years of this millennium. He could be quite direct, provocative, and challenging - but he could also be very supportive, understanding and helpful. So many doctoral researchers in the Aalborg programme at this time benefited from his insightful thinking. He supervised Trygve Aasgaard and Hanne Mette Ochsner Ridder - both of whom produced excellent theses, and really contributed a lot. I will always remember him fixing a rather muddled and questioning researcher with his penetrating gaze and saying "I condemn you to 1 year in a library"!!!.
David and I worked for two years on the development of the European Congress in Naples, together with Even Ruud and our great colleague from Italy, Gianluigi Di Framco. These were wonderful years - when so much was being achieved. David was collecting many resources, and seemed to be endlessly publishing. He still is!!
I have a great admiration for David Aldridge. He writes with a clear and understandable language, and has made such an outstanding contribution as a researcher. His publications over the years have really supported the development of qualitative research, and he has a deep understanding of the field, of evidence based approaches, and of music therapy enquiry. We have all benefited from his knowledge and his enthusiasm.
TONY WIGRAM - 3RD MAY 2007
Happy Birthday David!: A short message that has been a long time in the making - from Simon Gilbertson
As I thought about writing a short birthday message to you it started getting longer and longer and longer. I had set out to write an impressive and eloquent text of congratulation and celebration of your 60th Birthday. As I started, I began to think about listing all of your books, the articles, the CD's, the internet presence, your teaching, your role in music therapy at a global level, the conferences, the presentations and the advice and support you have given to students of music therapy and other professions. I was finding myself wandering through the fields of music therapy, research, philosophy, medicine, music, art, ethnology, anthropology, photography, sociology...and your most recent project, My Top Ten . It was becoming almost impossible to keep track of all the references to your publications and I realised that my birthday greeting was beginning to look something like an archive catalogue at the British Library!
What I realised was, that I had become diverted from the real birthday message that I wanted to convey. I just want to say thank you for what you have done for me and to wish you all the best on your birthday, to enjoy the things that are important and to rest from the things that are insignificant.
I am sure you know, without having told you explicitly, that you belong to three men who have been of significant importance in my development, alongside my Dad.
John Wilbraham was a world-class trumpeter, recording a wide range of repertoire including Bach's 2nd Brandenburg Concerto and the Filmscore for Citizen Cane. Years of solo and orchestral playing gave him an extraordinary range of experience for his teaching.
Albert Alan Owen (Alan to his friends) is a composer, pianist and teacher. Alan studied with the great artists and teachers, Nadia Boulanger in Paris, and Harold Craxton (piano) and Patrick Savill (composition) in London and is a truly marvellous musician. He has composed, recorded and released leading contemporary music for over 30 years.
Together with yourself, it is a privilege to have such great mentors, people who have led by example and, to use your phrase, by `doing'. Like my Dad told me recently, `They have shared their great knowledge like a father would do!'
To celebrate your birthday, the gift I have for you is my gratitude for the time you have shared with me. You have been my mentor during my process as a doctoral research student, you have been my boss during my time as a research assistant on the Structured Literature Review Project at your Chair for Qualitative Research in Medicine, University Witten/Herdecke and most recently you have given me the great opportunity to work as a music therapist in the new and exciting Nordoff Robbins Centre in Witten, Germany together with yourself, Lutz Neugebauer and Sibylle Kreuzner-Tripke. And during all these years you have helped me to find my path on the long winding road. Thank you so much.
As you can imagine, it has taken me absolutely ages to decide what to write in these few lines. I have taken time, and the text has become shorter. Of all the things I am looking forward to doing on your birthday is to share some jokes and talk about the important things in life with each other, like we do, with a decent cup of tea on the big red sofa in the Villa .
I, and my whole family, celebrate with you and wish you all the best on your Birthday.
Simon
Tucek, Gerhard
There are essential encounters to which we look back with gratitude. Such a moment in my life was when I met David Aldridge. This was at the Herbert von Karajan Centre in Vienna. When I mentioned our activities in the context of the Institute of Ethno Music Therapy, he said: `Clive and Carol Robbins visited you and then passed on your present to me.' I was quite confused and had no idea what this present for David could have been; many years had passed since then. He must have read my embarrassment from my expression because he helped me: `A Sufi jacket, a symbol of a strong connection between us.'
This story is typical of David as I have come to know and appreciate him. He has a marvellous way of integrating the most diverse aspects of human life: academic teaching and research at the highest possible level - he has the reputation of a demanding mentor - combined with profound humanity and clarity of thought.
David supported the process of establishing Traditional Oriental Music Therapy at a time when this approach was still highly controversial in the music therapy community. He did not hesitate to visit us at our clinic in order to get a personal impression of our work in practice.
I had the priviledge of many encounters and discussions with him where I became acquainted with multiple aspects of his personality: his affectionate way of joking with his wife Gudrun, his academic originality and imagination, and also his artistic sensibility provide much stimulation. He is very clear in his outlook and never leaves any doubt about his opinions and attitude - a character trait I appreciate very much.
In his academic work he demonstrates a deep understanding of individuals in difficult situations. His research addresses individuals with their personal histories, worries and needs, and not `test subjects'. In recent years he made essential contributions to academic progress of arts therapies; his database of music therapy constitutes an invaluable service to students and professionals of many therapeutic disciplines.
I wish him many further years of health and inspired work. Personally I feel that my story with David and his wife is an impressive example of a professional relationship turning into sincere friendship, and this makes me grateful.
With best wishes
Gerhard Tucek
Ode to David
With love from
Lucanne and Alessandro
David, look at your life
Sixty years and so much more
So many lives you have touched
There'll be so many more
Love found, forever long
Givin' things that don't get lost
Like a coin that won't get tossed
Rollin' home to you
David, look at your life
There's no one like you
So many people who love you
The whole life through
Ah, one look in your eyes
And you can tell its true
Living in the German woods
Painting pictures, buying goods
Cooking meals and playing guitar, Gudrun at your side
You've been first and last
Singing songs as time goes past
But we're all together at last
Rolling home to you
Download song (mp3 6,1 MB)
A common language for therapy processes - A retrospective of David Aldridge's early studies
This article explores the theoretical background of therapeutic processes in music therapy on the basis of David Aldridge's early studies from the years 1989 to 1993. David Aldridge came to the Institute of Music Therapy of the University Witten/Herdecke in 1987. At that time a specific understanding of therapy and research had emerged at the anthroposophical community hospital in Herdecke, influenced and stimulated by the theories of the founder of the community hospital and the university, Gerhard Kienle, the research methodologist R. Burkhardt, the neurologist and later university president Konrad Schily, and the psychiatrist Peter Matthiessen. David Aldridge described these developments in the first chapters of his book Music therapy and research in medicine - from out of the silence that was published in 1996.
His criticism of a mechanic understanding of individuals and their biologies addressed the de-individualization of illness and its significance for our lives. Every illness poses a very personal question to the patient and his or her potential. The "Herdecke approaches" to health, illness and therapy reveal an orientation that perceives the individual as an artist of his or her own biography.
One of his objectives was to create a common language to describe the effects of music therapy, to be used by the professional groups of physicians, nursing staff, art and music therapists, eurhythmics and speech therapists at the community hospital who all had their own terminologies.
"The overall expectation is that the recreational, emotional and physical health of the patient is improved", as Aldridge summed up in an article on music therapy in clinical settings (Aldridge 1993b, 19). He concluded that a definite explanation of the effects is hardly possible: "it is only our hubris that attempts to say that we know what the process of healing in therapy is" (Aldridge 1990a, 193/4). With regard to problems involved in how we perceive illness and health and specifically in decisions on prevention, he demands an "ecology of ideas" and points out that there is not only one reality "from which we can determine our understandings, only varying ways of fitting behaving and thinking together" (Aldridge 1990d, 720).
Aldridge offers a semantic structure that facilitates a definition and (self)evaluation of one's own experiences, perceptions and interpretations of phenomena, whereby he underlines the linguistic definition and interpretation problems of the experience dimension of art, psyche and therapy in the sense of a
"return to phenomena": "...talking about therapy is always at several steps removed from the actual activity in which we partake" (Aldridge 1990a, 193).
Fundamental linguistic differences become apparent between an (academic) understanding of a world "out there" that is described on the basis of relations between subject, predicate and object on the one hand, and verbal forms on the other ("The arts are based on verbs and doing is all important" (ibid.) in the creative/artistic process that stresses action.
However, "what the arts offer is a common grammatical structure based on performance where space and time are lived and experienced directly often out of verbal realm" (ibid.). He describes the common grammatical structure of these "different expressive faculties" (ibid. 189) in arts therapies as an "underlying commonality of form and pattern" (ibid.).
For a (clinical and academic) processing of experiences, their descriptions and the interpretation of events in therapy Aldridge offers three different levels of reporting:
On these three levels, we can handle and negotiate
"However, the continuing problems of chronic illness and human suffering urge us to go beyond our partisan beliefs and look again at how we know as well as what we know. This is literally the art of re-search." (Aldridge 1990b, 64).
For a better understanding of the patient as a whole being, Aldridge demands not only "scientific skills" of medicine and psychology but "a descriptive science of the human behaviour which can be based on the aesthetic" (Aldridge 1991d, 149) and "(a) search for reconciliation of a difference within the framework of the scientific, which is Truth, and the aesthetic, which is Beauty" (ibid. 150). In the creative act "our inner lives in all their depth and richness are given coherence and presented externally as created form. In this way we help our patients to articulate their inner realities as beautiful. This is the manifestation of the aesthetic" (ibid. 1990a, 195). Aldridge writes this against the background of the "creation of an ethic the fundamental act of which is creative in nature" (ibid. 1991a, 66).
Aldridge expands the classical Nordoff/Robbins concept of the "Music child" (Nordoff/Robbins 1986) to the existential perspective of a "music as identity" that covers development and growth perspectives of the "Music child" as well as the ability to understand the music audible in the therapy process as an expression of identity in the bio-psycho-social sense and thus to open up diagnostic perspectives. Analyses of the continuous form, of the "how" of musical and extramusical communication processes, evaluate specific methods of the therapist and reactions/behaviours of the child/the patient with a view to their isomorphic elements. The rhythmic context of elements and the attention mode of the individual are very important.
Aldridge has a basic belief in the uniqueness of individual qualities and development history of the individual. Individuals have developed and continue to develop. "This tension between what we have become, and what we are becoming, can be reconciled within the context of the aesthetic as a created form" (Aldridge 1990b, 70).
Human beings are "composers" of their own identities which - seen as musical form - are composed continuously in the world. Aldridge states a correlation, or better, an isomorphy of musical form and biological form. Isomorphy in this context is the event when two complex structure may be projected over each other in such a way that each part in one structure has a corresponding element in the other structure (compare Bateson 1973). Aldridge prefers to see humans as "symphonic" and not as "mechanic" beings (Aldridge 1991a, 97ff). Accordingly, the patient expresses himself as a composer of his symphonic identity in music therapy and makes this identity audible. In the music therapy process the temporal-dynamic "coming into being" is made audible as creative potential in the "aesthetic context" (Aldridge, 1990b, 70) of creative musical improvisation. Limitations of the individual will also become apparent.
"This context permits the expression of tendencies that have potential for the states called health and illness" (Aldridge 1991a, 107).
Since music as a temporal art reveals itself as emerging and developing, Aldridge compares the therapy process as a process of joint musical improvisation to the "coming into being" of the individual. "What may be heard is the individual in the world" (Aldridge 1991a, 107). He underlines the audible congruity between musical form and the self in this process (compare Aldridge 1990a, 189). The mode of rhythmic play (not only on the drum) of an individual reveals that person's temporal "entrainment", his or her internal psycho-psychical synchronization with him- or herself and the world. We may interpret this individual sychronization as the musical self, as the individual's musical and symphonic identity (compare Aldridge 1990b, 66/67). Entrainment means the rhythmic interaction of body systems. Instead of a mechanistic view of individual that looks for a main clockwork that drives all other ryhthms, he favours a non-material, a "musical analogy for the coordination of rhythm" (Aldridge 1991a, 103) in the sense of symphonic identity. As a hypothesis for a somatic regulative centre to coordinate the rhythmic context, he proposes the suprachiasmatic nucleus in the hypothalamus in another publication (compare 1991b, 743). The music that emerges in joint improvisation is therefore not only music as therapy but in the sense of "music as identity" (Aldridge 1990b, 66) is also an illustration of the person's identity.
The question arises what happens to the therapist's identity. Is not his identity in joint improvisation of equal importance, or is he nothing but an empty vessel and catalyst for the patient's music and identity?
"The phenomenon of total perception is revealed" in music (ibid.) where the phenomenon of music is intuitively understood as one entity. In addition, "the phenomenon becomes its own explanation while listening to music" (Aldridge 1991a, 99).
The perception of music, which according to Aldridge's understanding as a "holistic strategy" also comprises the element of participation in performance (compare ibid. 98), also means "to imbue meaning to what has been heard" and is therefore an "act of identity generation" (ibid. 99). It must be pointed out that Aldridge is not only concerned with listening to music; his particular interest is the perception of music in active music-making. There is a continuous interaction between the physical character of the musical stimulus and the effects on human physiology (compare Aldridge 1989b; 1991a; 1993a+b). Referring to the "integrative process underlying the perception of music as well as physiological coherence", Aldridge declares rhythm as the "key to the music-immanent process, to its physiological context and personal identity" (Aldridge 1990b, 66).
"Personality constitutes its individual health again and again in every moment as a creative act" (Neugebauer 1992, 7). Accordingly, human beings are active producers of their own health (compare v. Weizsäcker 1930, 94) in an individual and social-temporal continuum.
Time as chronos, with a linear development, exists among other things as a socially binding convention in the regulation of activities within organisational forms, specifically in relation to mechanistic forms of production and organization (-> 1). We may have difficulties with this kind of time when we have a "shortage of time" or "there is not enough time". In contrasts, there is the personal, inner time of the individual, or "kairos". (-> 2) This time emerges "from the self" and is "personal rather than social" (Aldridge, 1990b, 67). It is the time of individual (-> 3) rhythm in action. These actions refer to the world or to the individual himself.
An individual may be caught in the contradictions and tensions of personal demands (private, kairotic time) and in social demands (social, chronological time).
From this perspective, illness may also be a contextual attempt "to maintain identity in view of enforced external limitations or handicaps" (ibid).
"Tension between individual and social time may be perceived in musical improvisation" (Aldridge 1992, 178).
Referring to the periodicities of body rhythms, Aldridge develops an understanding of human nature, the temporal, psycho-physical "existential basis" of which (Aldridge 1991a, 104) may be described in musical terms and becomes audible in the music therapy process. As "patterned frequencies in a matric of time" (Aldridge 1989a, 96), individuals and their bodies constitute a unique network of rhythmic couplings of body systems. Illness becomes audible since these interferring frequency patterns (compare Aldridge 1991a, 103) within their own rhythmic synchronization in their "global rhythmic strategy" (ibid.106) get "out of rhythm" (ibid.) and are restricted in their musical reactions and activities.
"An interruption of this overriding global strategy affects a person's ability to detect new or changed non-temporal information ..." (ibid.).
In illustration of unconscious, intrapersonal and interpersonal communication patterns, Aldridge refers to studies by Concon, among others, who performed frame by frame analyses of interaction scenes among family members in the 1960s. Condon demonstrated that the bodies of the listeners "dance" in rhythm with that of the speaker and that the speaker's own body "dances" in time with his own speech. As a social dimension of the physical, this revealed the interaction of such rhythmic frequency patterns in intrapersonal and interpersonal relations and the way in which they control and affect communication processes out of the range of conscious awareness (compare Aldridge 1989b, 743/4; 1991b).
The exchange of verbal and nonverbal information is a mutual and simultaneous process of intrapersonal and interpersonal communication (compare Aldrigde 1989b). Information may also be a specific nonverbal "energy form" that exists in the social sphere, whereby Bateson prefers the term "information" (compare Aldridge 1990c, 180). Bateson understands illness as an iconic, prelingual form of comunication that is oriented towards archaic communicative elements. Symptoms (of illness) may also be seen as "metaphorical analogical symbolical communication" (ibid. 182) that is transported into a socially accepted "case of illness". Aldridge gives examples (e.g. "headache" as a reason to avoid unpleasant business meetings) that reveal the symbolic character of illness. A person's habitus is also expressed in basic "typical" forms and figures of attitude and movement. The signitive character of somebody's bent posture and shuffling walk may symbolize the "burden" of an illness. From this perspective illness becomes a form of habituation that the individual has internalized or that comes from the "inner subconscious". Certain forms of habituation remain conservative, are difficult to change or to express verbally and form part of the central system-stabilizing factors of the inner, mental-spiritual and physical life. Such habituations also become modes of information on pathological transformation processes.
Such habituations may be addressed and rendered audible in the therapeutic process, in joint creative activity (compare ibid. 180/1).
Illness is also a "journey into the unknown" (Aldridge 1990c, 178) that contains a patient's continuous fear of loss of reality, whereby symptoms signify the struggle for expression of the unknown, inner reality; art has the mission to "confront us with something we have not realized before" (ibid) and therefore becomes an indicative means of objectification of subjective reality (compare ibid. 179/182). Music or art in general does not only stimulate feelings but facilitates expression of the unknown.
Joint improvisation produces audible information on the unknown. But what may be heard in the music therapy process is not a "message from the subconscious" (compare ibid. 181). Art becomes a form of behaviour which perfects the communication about how to handle unconscious material (compare ibid. 180).
Meaning is created when we relate observation, statements or behaviour to an individual and continually developing "framework of fundamentals" (ibid. 179). In the therapy process, a patient's framework of fundamentals is addressed and updated when his internal unknown elements are made known through the objectivation of a jointly produced "work of art" (compare ibid. 180). The patient reveals his "ecology of ideas", his fundamental elements of knowledge. In an artistically oriented therapy process, the act of creation transforms the negative sign of the illness (in the sense of iconic communication) into a socially positive sign (compare ibid. 184) as a potential. The patient thus experiences a change in meaning through therapy. This change in meaning - specifically if such meanings symbolize something personal or social - appears to be a basic element of healing processes and rituals (-> 4).
"It is the change in an individual's meaning of life which appears to characterize many healing rituals" (Aldridge 1991c, 426).
This change in meaning may then become an initial moment of change in an episode of illness. If for example a patient suffering from spasticity discovers and experiences that his body movements which he himself defined as uncontrollable can make rhythmic sense in musical improvisation, and that in this specific context he is able to change and shape the music with his own ideas and intentions, then this might provide relief from frustration. The improvisation brings a positive body experience and a changed perception of the self which he may wish to transfer to other areas. Consciousness is and becomes a creative act, an expression of "I am able" as an important part of intentionality which cannot be measured but made audible in therapy (compare ibid. 1990c, 180). If illness in general is accompanied by loss of individual performance then it is a reflexive limitation of consciousnes that leads to limitations of individual perspective of possible action patterns. This suggests that consciousness is a creative act in itself and depends on action, intention, reflection and experience of the conscious individual.
In the context of communication processes Aldridge explores the "how", i.e. the mode that organizes coherence and maintenance of personal and social identity. On identity which he believes to be a musical, a symphonic identity, he finds isomorphic elements between musical forms and forms of communication.
"The basic preverbal fundamentals of human communication are called suprasegmentals - these are time, phrasing, rhythm, pitch and voice tone (which would more accurately be called timbre). It is these qualities that are considered by music therapists when they assess tape-recorded sessions of improvised music therapy." (ibid. 1991b, 59).
If we consider speach in terms of phrasing, rhythm, pitch and melody indepent from the "primate of the soken word", then we have "a different range of logic from the predicator logic" (ibid. 1991a, 101). In such a different range individuals may adapt to the system of "dynamics, movement, interval and time" (ibid.) and "become all right". In this way identity is composed "with regard to relational patterns, rhythms and melodic contours" (ibid. 101/2).
The fundamental elements in communication are therefore of a musical nature and are regulated rhythmically in a matrix of time which is not static. The temporal matrix offers an element of predictability of actions and a structure for events, in biological processes, in social interaction processes and also in musical improvisation. Rhythm is "the musical aspect of communication fundamental to the way in which we relate to ourselves and to others". Aldridge concludes that music in its continuous form is isomorphic to the process of life (compare Aldridge 1989b, 743).
A core concept in the analysis of the continuous form of communicative processes is the term "synchronization". Aldridge differentiates between:
1) intrapersonal "self-synchronization" and
2) interpersonal "interactional synchronization".
Phrasing is another means to illustrate biological and musical processes and the mutually known synchronization context. Talking to others we generally recognize from rhythmic and melodic accentuaton when our partner has ended a phrase, and we give a "feedback" through short vocalizations, gestures and small body movements.
The communicative situation thus shows a continuous reception and transmission on of order in a mutually constructed emerging rhythmic structure, in a rhythmic context "known" to both participants. The "knowledge" of speaker and listener of this specific synchronization context is determind by physiology (in case of similar physiology) and also culture (compare ibid.)
This synchronization context of interaction has been learned and constitutes an interdependent process between mother (parent) and child in infant speech development. Both partners learn each other's rhythmic structures.
The child in his or her own kairological time and self-synchronization assumes the parent's rhythmic synchronization structure (not only of language) and is thus introduced into chronological time structures.
Aldridge detects parallels between this mutual learning of synchronization contexts and music therapy. The therapist discovers a patient's rhythmic structure, and the patient is met within that rhythmic structure (Aldridge 1989b, 744). Therapist and patient experience their partner's rhythmical structure in music.
Aldridge points out two other similarities between communication and music therapy that may be observed in joint improvisation. Referring to Stern's studies of nonverbal behavour of mother and infant, Aldridge explains differences of co-action and alternation (in the sense of mutual interaction).
Co-action occurs in interaction between mother and infant in joint vocalizations. This early behaviour mode resembles mutual eye contact, similar body positions and joint rhythm in structure and function. This mode is an indicator of emotional state and occurs in adults in situations of interpersonal excitation. Co-action underlines the event of communication itself and provides information on inner connectedness and the quality of the relation.
The contrasting form, that of alternation, may be detected as a dialogical pattern in interactions where one partner speaks, the other listens and where symbolic information is exchanged. This mode is significant for language acquisition.
Both forms become audible in joint improvisation. A restriction of musical elements of communication, like pitch, accent, timbre and fluency, appears to be indicative of psychopathological aspects.
The following characteristics for the evaluation of global behaviour of type A might - with slight moderations - also be an excerpt from the table of descriptions of music therapy sessions (compare ibid. 180):
|
Type A Behavior |
Type B Behavior |
Musical Components |
|
increased voice volume |
voice quieter |
volume |
|
fast speech rate |
slower speech rate |
tempo |
|
short response latency |
longer response latency |
phrasing |
|
empathic voice |
less emphasis |
articulation |
|
hard metallic voice |
melodic voice |
timbre |
|
less mutuality |
increased mutuality |
musical relationship |
|
trying to keep control |
less need for control |
musical relationship |
|
increased reactivity |
moderate reactivity |
responsive |
|
increased heart rate |
decreased heart rate |
tempo |
|
higher cardiovascular arousal |
cardiovascular arousal |
dynamic |
|
maintained |
returns to lower level |
|
(Aldridge 1992, 176/7; 1993b, 21)
|
Speech |
Music |
|
Volume of voice |
Volume of music |
|
Tempo of speech |
Tempo of play |
|
Accelerated speech at the end of statements |
Accelerated play at the end of phrases |
|
Duration of intervals without speech |
Duration of intervals without play |
|
Length of patient's response |
Length of patient's musical reactions/actions |
|
Interrupting and not interrupting simultaneous speech |
Interrupting and not interrupting simultaneous play |
|
Responce latency (length of time between posing a question and the test person's answer) |
This would be similar in a musical game of question and answer |
|
Timbre of voice |
Timbre of singing voice |
(Aldridge 1992, 180)
Music therapy permits in addition to observe the "linguistic movements", that is, the nonverbal communicative elements like movement, gesture, mimics, or vocal behaviour and to listen how the patient communicates nonverbally. The musical-kinetic behaviour is assessed through the "almost intangible quality of intentionality" (Aldridge 1992, 181) in body movements, in the mode of "direction" towards therapist and music. Here we can also observe and hear indicators of a disturbed self-synchronization (see above), for example a disturbed bilateral synchronization between right and left hand in drumming. Improvisation reveals the relation between therapist and patient and their interactional synchronization (see above) and also a patient's ability to relate.
This may also be illustrated in the connection between attention style and physiological responses.
Sandman examined test persons to descover connections between physiological responses and individually tangential stimuli that had either stress producing, neutral or pleasant qualities. Autonomic nervous system, heart, musculoskeletal system and endocrine system send peripherous information to the brain and thus make a context available in which perceptions become significant. The relation between attention and emotion was obviously influenced by two different attention styles:
Such field dependent or field independent characteristics become audible in patients' improvisations in music therapy:
Field independent persons
Field dependent persons
Based on Sandman's studies Aldridge reaches the preliminary conclusion "that repertoires of coping responses may be heard from a musical perspective and that these reflect quantitative, differentiated physiological reactions" (Aldridge 1992, 183).
It is interesting to note that field independent test persons showed decreasing heartrates in stress situations. This permits increased blood flow to the brain and - as was shown in experiments - improved attention to the environment. These findings cast doubts upon the belief that the brain exclusively controls intellectual abilities.
"With increasing heart rate this is indicative of cognitive processing and resistance against the environment; in decreasing heart rate there occurs a switch over to environment-directed attention. The cardiovascular system reflects a person's intention to absorb information" (ibid.). This suggests that intellectual abilities are not only associated with the brain but are also phenomena connected with the entire body, that our body also "knows something" and may react accordingly.
"If human survival is concerned with a repertoire of flexible coping esponses to external as well as internal demands, then we may hear in improvised musical play the creative way in which a person meets such demands" (Aldridge 1992, 184).
If we promote creative coping strategies in joint improvisation we might successfully initiate autonomy, creativity and a catalysis of self-healing properties for health and well-being.
If we assume that we all continuously compose our identities throughout our lives, then identity is a creative act where everybody unfolds his individual potential. A restriction of the ability to perform and give perspective to life, of autonomy and self-determination is seen as an illness. An individual's potentials and limitations, autonomy and artistic abilities become audible in musical improvisation.
Joint musical improvisation permits the generation of that very specific music out of the moment that emerges from individuals' musical identities. The music that is created in music therapy sessions is shaped by the patient/the child through his style, his reactions to the therapist's music and through the way he handles the musical material. What a patient plays in therapy is considered as isomorphic to his identity. According to Aldridge, individuals are "patterned frequencies in a matrix of time". The concept of time is differentiated here as an inner, personal time as Kairos and an external, social time as chronos. The mode of perception is closely related to a person's identity and is determined by a global rhythmic strategy as a basis of identity and behaviour. These preconscious identity consolidating areas that are unknown to the individual may find expression in the art of music as therapy. Various elements of fundamental habituation and fundamental communicative elements and forms are addressed in the method of joint improvisation, are transferred to a different context, and rendered audible. The assumption is that the continuous form of joint improvisation is isomorphic to the continuous form of interaction processes. The intrapersonal self-synchronization of body systems becomes audible in rhythmic drumming. Interpersonal synchronization occurs in the contextual synchronization of speech behaviours, as for example accompanying gesture, mimics and haptics in interactive situations. These two forms of synchronization are audible in the context of improvisation. In verbal communications the bodies of the interacting individuals "dance" in time to the rhythm of speech. We can see two fundamentally different styles of interaction: co-action and alternation, which may also be detected in joint improvisation as musical form in a simultaneous and interwoven play or on the other hand in an alternating game of question and answer.
The suprasegmentals as preverbal elements of human communication are musical in nature. These elements (time, phrasing, pitch and timbre of voice) become evaluation parameters in analysis after therapy. Descriptions of pathological speech behaviours are analogous to descriptions of pathological modes of play. A comparison of type A and type B behaviours of heart patients reveals behavioral modes that reveal among other things attention as a contextual behaviour where perception and open emotional participation demonstrate an open, alert connection to the field of perception or where distracting information produces a perceptive behaviour inappropriate to the situation and insufficient forms of emotional processing. Accordingly, therapy has the potential to make an emotional repertoire of creative coping strategies and reactions audible.
Aldridge, D. (1989a) A phenomenological comparison of the organisation of music and the self. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 16(2), 91-97.
Aldridge, D. (1989b) Music, Communication and Medicine: discussion paper. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 82(12), 743-746.
Aldridge, D.; Brandt, G. & Wohler, D. (1990a) Towards a common language among the creative art therapies. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 17, 189-195.
Aldridge, D. (1990b) Aus der Stille heraus. Perspektiven - Zeitschrift für Wissenschaft, Kultur und Praxis, 6(3), 64-70.
Aldridge, D. (1990c) Meaning and Expression: The Pursuit of Aesthetics in Research. Holistic Medicine, 5, 177-186
Aldridge, D. (1990d) Making and taking health care decisions: discussion paper. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Vol. 83, November, 720-723.
Aldridge, D. (1991a) Musik und das Selbst - Eine phänomenologische Studie. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 12, 97- 109.
Aldridge, D. (1991b) Physiological change, communication, and the playing of improvised music: some proposals for research. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 18, 59-64.
Aldridge, D. (1991c) Spirituality, healing and medicine. Journal of British General Practices, 41, 425-427.
Aldridge, D. (1991d) Aesthetics and the individual in the practice of medical research: discussion paper. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Vol. 84, March, 147-150.
Aldridge, D. (1992) Physiologische Veränderungen beim Spielen improvisierter Musik. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 13(3), 174-186.
Aldridge, D. (1993a) Music therapy I: A review of the medical literature within a general context of music therapy research. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 20, 11-35.
Aldridge, D. (1993b) The Music of the Body: Music Therapy in Medical Settings. Advances - The Journal of Mind-Body Health, 9(1) 17-35.
Aldridge, D. (1996). Music therapy and research in medicine - from out of the silence. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Bateson, G. (1973) Steps to an ecology of mind. London Paladin.
Burgin, V. (1990) The end of art theory: Criticism and postmodernity. London: Macmillan 1989
Burkhardt, R., & Kienle, G. (1983). Basic problems in controlled trials. Journal of Medical Ethics, 9, 80-84.
Neugebauer, L. (1992) Therapie als Dialog - Eine Darstellung zur Korrelation körperlicher und nicht-körperlicher Ebenen des Dialoges am Beispiel einer physiologischen Untersuchung während der Musiktherapie. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. UniversityWitten/ Herdecke
Matthiesen, P. (1990). Das Krankenhaus der Zukunft. Natur und Ganzheitsmedizin, 3, 160-167.
Nordoff, P., & Robbins, C. (1986). Schöpferische Musiktherapie - Individuelle Behandlung für das behinderte Kind. Stuttgart: G. Fischer Verlag.
Schily, K. (1974). Das Herdecker Modell: Ziele und Erfahrungen. Deutsches Ärzteblatt, 11 783 - 785.
Weizäcker, V. v. (1930) Soziale Krankheit und soziales Gesunden. In "Gesammelte Schriften" Vol. 8. 35-95
Publications from David Aldridge
Aldridge,D. and Fachner, J. (editors) Music and Altered States: Consciousness, Transcendence, Therapy and Addictions. Jessica Kingsley, London 2006.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Music Therapy and Neurological Rehabilitation. Performing Health. Jessica Kingsley, London 2005.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Case Study Designs in Music Therapy. Jessica Kingsley, London 2005.
Aldridge,D. Health, the Individual and Integrated Medicine. Return to an Aesthetic of Health Care. Jessica Kingsley, London 2004.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Musiktherapie in der Behandlung von Demenz, "music therapy world series". Books on Demand, Norderstedt 2003.
Aldridge,D. La musicoterapia nella ricerca e nella pratica medica. ISMEZ Onlus, Rome 2002.
Aldridge,D. and Dembski,M. (editors) Musiktherapie - Diagnostik und Wahrnehmung, ,music therapy world series". University Witten Herdecke, Witten 2002.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Kairos V : Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Huber Verlag, Bern 2001.
Aldridge,D., DiFranco,D., Ruud,E. and Wigram,T. (editors) Music Therapy in Europe - Musicoterapia in Europa. ISMEZ, Rome 2001.
Aldridge,D. Spirituality, healing and medicine. Jessica Kingsley, London 2000.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Music therapy in dementia care: More new voices. Jessica Kingsley, London 2000.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Kairos IV : Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Huber Verlag, Bern 2000.
Aldridge,D. Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Forschungsstrategien und praktische Erfahrungen. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern. 1999
Aldridge,D. (editor) Music therapy in palliative care: New voices. Jessica Kingsley, London 1999.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Kairos III : Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Huber Verlag, Bern 1999.
Aldridge,D. Suicide: The tragedy of hopelessness. Jessica Kingsley, London 1998 .
Aldridge,D. (editor) Kairos II : Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Huber Verlag, Bern 1998.
Aldridge,D. (editor) Kairos I : Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Huber Verlag, Bern 1997.
Aldridge, D. Music therapy research and practice in medicine: From out of the silence. Jessica Kingsley, London 1996 .
Lewith,G and Aldridge,D. Clinical research methodology for complementary therapies. Hodder and Stoughton: London 1993.
Lewith,G and Aldridge,D. Complementary medicine and the European Community. C.W.Daniel Co., Saffron Walden, 1991.
Aldridge, D. One body: a guide to healing in the Church. S.P.C.K, London, 1987.
Aldridge,G and Aldridge,D. A hermeneutic of melody: Bridge across the silence. Jessica Kingsley, London 2007.
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Aldridge, D. Info CD Rom 1, 1997
Aldridge, D. Info CD Rom II, 1999
Aldridge, D. and Fachner J. Info CD Rom III, 2001
Aldridge, D. and Fachner J. Info CD Rom IV, 2002
Aldridge,D. and Fachner J. Info CD Rom V, 2004
Aldridge,D., Gilbertson, S. and Wentz, M. Database CD Rom, Music Therapy World Journal Index, 2004
Aldridge, D. 1998 "Music Therapy with Children", Jessica Kingsley, London .
a series of annotated digitised videotape material from music therapy practice.
Aldridge, D. 2007 Qualitative methods in CAM research. In Adams, J. (Ed.) Researching Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Routledge, London, New York pp3-18.
Aldridge, D. 2006 Music, Consciousness and Altered States. In Aldridge, D. and Fachner, J. (Eds.) Music and Altered States: Consciousness, Transcendence, Therapy and Addictions. Jessica Kingsley, London pp9-14
Aldridge, D. 2006 Music Therapy and Spirituality: A Transcendental Understanding of Suffering. In Aldridge, D. and Fachner, J. (Eds.) Music and Altered States: Consciousness, Transcendence, Therapy and Addictions. Jessica Kingsley, London pp155-171.
Ostermann, T., Kusatz, M., Aldridge, D. 2005 Markov Chains in Medical Research - A Methodological Contribution for the Evaluation of Outcome Effects in Tinnitus Treatment with Music Therapy. In Lasker,G.E. and Kratky,K.W. (Eds.) Health, Healing and Medicine. Volume XI. Comparative and Integrative Medicine. The International Institute for Advanced Studies in Systems Research and Cybernetics, Windsor, Ontario, Canada pp 83-88.
Aldridge, D. 2003 The therapeutic effects of music. In Wayne,J. and Crawford,C. (Eds.) Healing intention and energy medicine. Science, research methods and clinical implications. Churchill Livingstone: London pp151-174.
Aldridge, D. 2003 A qualitative research perspective on healing. In Wayne,J. and Crawford,C. (Eds.) Healing intention and energy medicine. Science, research methods and clinical implications. Churchill Livingstone: London pp225-238.
Aldridge, D. 2003 The creative arts therapies in the treatment of neurodegenerative illness. In Patxi del Campo (Ed.) Music Therapy and Art Therapy in Neurodegenerative Diseases. Fundación "la Caixa", Barcelona pp25-35.
Aldridge, D. 2002 Gebet und spirituelle Heilung im medizinischen Umfeld - Prayer and Spiritual Healing in Medical Settings. In Gottschalk-Batschkus, C. and Green, J. (Eds.) Handbuch der Ethnotherapien - Handbook of Ethnotherapies. Verlag BoD Print on Demand, Hamburg pp53-75.
Aldridge, D. 2002 Music therapy research: A review of references in the medical literature. In Chez, R. (Ed.) The Science and Spirituality of Healing - Conference Proceedings, Old Salem, North Carolina, October 26-29, 2000. pp146-179.
Aldridge, D. 2002 Musiktherapieforschung - eine Erzählperspektive. In Petersen, P. (Ed.) Forschungsmethoden künstlerischer Therapien. Grundlagen - Projekte - Vorschläge. Verlag Johannes M. Mayer, Stuttgart, Berlin pp123-147.
Aldridge, D., Gustorff, D. and Neugebauer, L. 2002 Musiktherapie mit entwicklungsverzögerten Kindern. In Petersen, P. (Ed.) Forschungsmethoden künstlerischer Therapien. Grundlagen - Projekte - Vorschläge. Verlag Johannes M. Mayer, Stuttgart, Berlin pp191-205.
Ritter, Ch. and Aldridge, D. 2002 Qigong Yangsheng in der Anwendung bei essentieller Hypertonie im Vergleich mit einer westlichen Muskelentspannungstherapie: Eine randomisierte, kontrollierte Pilotstudie. In Hildenbrand, G. and Geißler, M. (Eds.) Qigong und Yangsheng. Medizinisch Literarische Verlagsgesellschaft, Uelzen pp100-111.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Music therapy research: A narrative perspective. In Aldridge, D. et al. (Eds.) Music Therapy in Europe - Musicoterapia in Europa. ISMEZ Editore, Rome pp105-112.
Aldridge, D. 2001 La ricerca in musicoterapia: Una prospettiva storica. In Aldridge, D. et al. (Eds.) Music Therapy in Europe - Musicoterapia in Europa. ISMEZ Editore, Rome pp271-278.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Reflexión. In Instituto Musica, Arte y Proceso (Eds.) musicoterapia y arteterapia en las enfermedades neurogenerativas (conference proceedings), Vitoria-Gasteiz, Sept. 14-16, 2001, pp11-37.
Aldridge,D. 2000 The challenge of creativity. In Willows, D. and Swinton, J. (Eds.) Spiritual dimensions in pastoral care: Practical Theology in a Multidisciplinary Context. Jessica Kingsley, London pp188-195.
Aldridge, D. 2000 Musiktherapie und der schöpferische Akt. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos V: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp4-15.
Aldridge, D. and Aldridge, G. 1999 Life as jazz: Hope, meaning and music therapy in the treatment of life threatening illness. In Dileo,C. Music therapy and medicine: Theoretical and clinical implications. American Music Therapy Association, Silver Spring, pp79-94.
Aldridge, D. 1999 Aus der Stille heraus. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos III: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp4-11.
Aldridge, D. and Aldridge, G. 1999 Auf der Suche nach einer gemeinsamen Sprache für die kreativen Kunsttherapien. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos III: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp12-25.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Literatur zur Musiktherapie in Krankenhäusern. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos II: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp14-25.
Aldridge, D. and Neugebauer, L. 1998 Kommunikation, Herztätigkeit und musikalischer Dialog. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos II: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp26-39.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Leben als Jazz. In Aldridge, D. (Ed.) Kairos II: Beiträge zur Musiktherapie in der Medizin. Verlag Hans Huber, Bern, pp4-13.
Aldridge, D. 1997 Women and suicidal behaviour in the context of a psychiatric hospital ward. In Gottschalk-Batschkus, C.E., Schuler, J. and Idling, D. (Eds.) Women and Health - Ethnomedical Perspectives. VWB-Verlag für Wissenschaft und Bildung, Berlin, pp207-215.
Aldridge, D. 1997 Personal construing: a conversational paradigm for research. In Bolay, H:V., Boller, R., Czogalik, D. and Kächele, H. (Eds.) Wissenschaftliche Annäherungen an ein weites Feld. Gustav Fischer, Ulm.
Aldridge,D. 1997 Lifestyle, charismatic ideology and a praxis aesthetic. In Olesen, S., Eikard, B., Gad, P. and Erling, H. (Eds.) Studies in Alternative Therapy 4. Lifestyle and Medical Paradigms. INRAT, Odense University Press, Odense.
Aldridge,D. 1996 The development of music therapy research as a perspective of complementary medicine. In (Eds.) Olesen, S. and Høg, E. Alternative Therapy 3: Communication in and about alternative therapies, Odense University Press, Odense, pp64-72.
Aldridge,D. 1996 Towards the development of a European research culture in music therapy. In (Eds.) Pedersen, I.N and Bonde, L. Music Therapy within multi-disciplinary teams. Aalborg Universitetsforlag, Aalborg.
Aldridge, D. 1995 Spiritual healing and definition of the self. In (Eds.) Johannessen, H., Olesen, S. and Østergård, J. Alternative Therapy 2: Body and Nature, Odense University Press, Odense, pp118-130.
Aldridge, D. 2007 Essen mit Musik. Ritualisierung der Mahlzeiten. pflegen: Demenz 2, 26-29.
Aldridge, D. 2007 Der Atem in der Heilung. Lebendiges Zeugnis 62, 2, 129-144.
Aldridge, D., Fachner, J., Schmid, W. 2006 Musik,Wahrnehmung und veränderte Bewusstseinszustände. Studium fundamentale UWH; 1:15.
Jungblut, M., Gerhard, H., Aldridge, D. 2006 Die Wirkung einer spezifischen musiktherapeutischen Behandlung auf die sprachlichen Leistungen eines chronisch kranken Globalaphasikers - eine Falldarstellung. Neurologie & Rehabilitation 12,6, 339-347.
Kern, P., Aldridge, D. 2006 Using embedded music therapy interventions to support outdoor play of young children with autism in an inclusive community-based child care program. Journal of Music Therapy 43,4, 270-294.
Kern, P., Wolery, M., Aldridge, D. 2006 Use of songs to promote independence in morning greeting routines in young children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders DOI 10.1007/s10803-006-0272-1.
Aldridge, D. 2005 Vielleicht werde ich einfach nur alt. Musiktherapeutische Umschau 26, 2, 151-155.
Aldridge, D. 2005 Spirituality and medicine: complementary perspectives. Spirituality and Health International 6, 2, 71-80.
Aldridge, D., Schmid, W., Kaeder, M., Schmidt, C. and Ostermann, T. 2005 Functionality or aesthetics? A pilot study of music therapy in the treatment of multiple sclerosis patients. Complementary Therapies in Medicine 13, 25-33.
Kunzmann, B., Aldridge, D., Gruber, H., Hamberger, C. and Wichelhaus, B. 2005 Gesetzlicher Rahmen des Fallpauschalengesetzes - Qualitätssicherung und Erfassung psychosozialer Leistungen. Initiativen und Entwicklungen für die Künstlerischen Therapien. Musik-, Tanz- und Kunsttherapie 16, 2, 87-94.
Kunzmann, B., Aldridge, D., Gruber, H. and Wichelhaus, B. 2005 Künstlerische Therapien: Zusammenstellungen von Studien zu Künstlerischen Therapien in der Onkologie und Geriatrie. Hintergrund - Umsetzung - Perspektiven - Aufforderung. Musik-, Tanz- und Kunsttherapie 16, 2, 77-86.
Kusatz, M., Ostermann, T. and Aldridge, D. 2005 Auditive stimulation therapy as an intervention in subacute and chronic tinnitus: a prospective observational study. International Tinnitus Journal 11, 2, 163-169.
Ridder, H.-M. and Aldridge, D. 2005 Individual music therapy with persons with frontotemporal dementia: Singing dialogue. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy 14, 2, 91-106.
Schmid, W., Aldridge, D., Kaeder, M. and Ostermann, T. 2005 Funktionalität und Ästhetik - eine Pilotstudie zur Musiktherapie in der Behandlung multipler Sklerose. Neurologie & Rehabilitation 11, 3, 115-125.
Aldridge, D. 2004 Musiktherapie in der Behandlung von Demenz. Geriatrie Journal 4, 24-27.
Aldridge, D. 2004 Nah an der Praxis bleiben: Welche Art von Evidenz - für wen, durch wen? Musiktherapeutische Umschau 25, 3, 233-240.
Aldridge, D. 2004 The reflective practitioner in a community of enquiry: case study designs. Journal of holistic healthcare, 1, 2, 19-23.
Gilbertson, S. and Aldridge, D. 2004 The Australian Journal of Music Therapy and the Music Therapy World Journal Index: The first full text music therapy journal database. Australian Journal of Music Therapy 15, 76-83.
Jungblut, M. and Aldridge, D. 2004 Musik als Brücke zur Sprache - die musiktherapeutische Behandlungsmethode SIPARI bei Langzeitaphasikern. Neurologie & Rehabilitation 10, 2, 69-78.
Schmid, W. and Aldridge, D. 2004 Active music therapy in the treatment of multiple sclerosis patients: a matched control study. Journal of Music Therapy 41, 3, 225-240.
Aldridge, D. 2003 Music therapy references related to cancer and palliative care. British Journal of Music Therapy, 17,1, 17-25.
Friedrichs, E.., Pfistner, B.. and Aldridge, D. 2003 Qigong Yangsheng-Übungen als Begleittherapie bei Migräne und Spannungskopfschmerzen - Ergebnisse einer multizentrischen prospektiven Pilotstudie. Deutsche Zeitschrift für Akupunktur 46, 4, 6-17.
Gilbertson, S. and Aldridge, D. 2003 Searching PubMed/MEDFLINE, Ingenta, and the Music Therapy World Journal Index for articles published in the Journal of Music Therapy. Journal of Music Therapy XL (4), 324-344.
Schmid, W., Aldridge, D., Kaeder, M., Schmidt, C., and Ostermann, T. 2003 Gesundheit und kreativer Prozess - eine Pilotstudie zur musiktherapeutischen Betreuung von MS-Patienten. Pflegemagazin, 4,5, 14-23.
Aldridge, D. 2002 Philosophical speculations on two therapeutic applications of breath. Subtle Energies & Energy Medicine 12,2, 107-124.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Prayer and spiritual healing in medical settings. The International Journal of Healing and Care - Online 1, 1.
Ritter, C. and Aldridge, D. 2001 Qigong Yangsheng in der Anwendung bei essentieller Hypertonie im Vergleich mit einer westlichen Muskelentspannungstherapie. Chinesische Medizin 1,16, 48-63.
Aldridge, D. 2000 Guidelines for clinical research in complementary medicine. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 6,3,245-252.
Aldridge, D. 1999 Personal opinion. Developing a community of inquiry. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy 8,1, 25-35.
Aldridge, D. 1999 The challenge of creativity. Contact 129,1-2, 3-11.
Aldridge, D. 1998 A social scientist reflects on 15 years of research in complementary medicine. Complementary Therapies in Medicine 6, 147-151.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Music therapy and the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Clinical Gerontopsychology 4,1, 17-30.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Hope, meaning and music therapy in the treatment of life threatening illness. Cancer Prevention International 3, 279-286.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Spirituality, healing and medicine. Cancer Prevention International 3, 287-295.
Aldridge, D. 1998 Life as jazz: hope, meaning and music therapy in the treatment of life-threatening illness. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine 14, 271-282.
Neugebauer, L. and Aldridge, D. 1998 Communication, Heart Rate and the Musical Dialogue. British Journal of Music Therapy 12, 2, 46-52.
Reuther, I. and Aldridge, D. 1998 Qigong Yangsheng as a complementary therapy in the management of asthma: A single case appraisal. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary medicine 4, 2,173-183.
Aldridge, D. 1997 Women and suicidal behaviour in the context of a psychiatric hospital ward. Curare special issue 11/Women & Health, 207-215.
Aldridge,D. 1996 Towards the development of a research culture in music therapy. Music Therapy International Report, 10, 12-15.
Aldridge,D. 1996 The body, its politics, posture and poetics. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 23(2), 105-112.
Aldridge, D. 1996 Music therapy and its implications for child development. Curare, 9, 357-362.
Aldridge,D. 1996 Notes on the Phenomenon of "Becoming Healthy": Body, Identity, and Lifestyle. Advances, 12(1), 51-58.
Aldridge, D. 1996 Auf dem Weg zur Entwicklung einer europäischen Wissenschafts- und Forschungskultur für Musiktherapie. Developing a European scientific and research culture for music therapy. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 17(1), 6-16.
Aldridge, D. und Aldridge, G. 1996 A personal construct methodology for validating subjectivity in qualitative research. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 23(3), 225-236.
Aldridge, D. 1995 Performed identity: The value of expressive arts in clinical research. The Journal of Contemporary Health, 3, 49-52.
Aldridge, D. 1995 Music Therapy and the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Clinical Gerontologist, 16(1), 41-57.
Aldridge, D. 1995 Spirituality, hope and music therapy in palliative care. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 22(2), 103-109.
Aldridge, D. 1995 De la Musique en tant que Thérapie de la Maladie d'Alzheimer. Alzheimer Actualities, 99, 6-11.
Aldridge, D., Gustorff, D. and Neugebauer, L. 1995 A preliminary study of creative music therapy in the treatment of children with developmental delay. The Arts in Psychotherapy 22,189-205.
Aldridge, D., Gustorff, D. and Neugebauer, L. A pilot study of music therapy in the treatment of children with developmental delay. Complementary Therapies in Medicine 3, 197-205.
Schnürer, C., Aldridge, D., Altmaier, M., Neugebauer, L., Kleinrath, U. and Steinke, U. 1995 Kreativität, Individualität - Wege in der AIDS-Therapie?, AIDS-FORSCHUNG (AIFO), 10(1), 15-35.
Aldridge, D., Gustorff, D. and Neugebauer, L. 1994 Musiktherapie mit entwicklungsverzögerten Kindern. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 15(4), 307-334.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Musiktherapie in der medizinischen Literatur (1893-1990). Musiktherapeutische Umschau 15(4), 285-306.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Single-case research designs for the creative art therapist. The Arts in Psychotherapy 21(5), 333-342.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Alzheimer's Disease: rhythm, timing and music as therapy. Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy, 48(7), 275-281.
Aldridge, D. 1994 An overview of music therapy research, Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 15(2),109-134.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Die Rolle der kreativen Kunsttherapien in der Behandlung von AIDS, Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 15(2),109-134.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Unconventional medicine in Europe, Advances, 10 (1), 52-60.
Aldridge, D. 1994 The State's Responsibility and the Challenge of Alternative Medical Realities. Advances , 10(3), 72-75.
Aldridge, D. 1994 Musiktherapie in der medizinischen Literatur (1893-1990). Musiktherapeutische Umschau 15(4), 285-306.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Is there evidence for spiritual healing. Advances 9(4), 4-21.
Aldridge, D. 1993 A Rejoinder. Advances 9(4), 82-85.
Aldridge, D. 1993 The music of the body: Music therapy in medical settings. Advances 9(1), 17-35.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Clinical considerations in medical research. Journal of Chemotherapy, 5(S1), 551-552.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Music and Alzheimer's disease - assessment and therapy: a discussion paper. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 86, 93-95.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Hope, meaning and the creative arts therapies in the treatment of AIDS.The Arts in Psychotherapy 20, 285-297.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Artists or psycho-therapists. The Arts in Psychotherapy 20, 199-200.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Music therapy research I. A review of the medical research literature within a general context of music therapy research. The Arts in Psychotherapy 20, 11-35.
Aldridge, D. 1993 Music therapy II. Research methods suitable for music therapy. The Arts in Psychotherapy 20, 117-131.
Aldridge, D. 1992 The needs of individual patients in clinical research. Advances, 8(4), 58-65.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Suicidal behaviour: a continuing cause for concern. British Journal of General Practice, 42, 482-485.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Of ethics and education: strategies for curriculum development. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 85, 594-597.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Catching a cold is your own fault. Complementary Medical Research, 6(3), 128-133.
Aldridge, D. 1992 An introduction to electronic data management as a research tool. Complementary Medical Research, 6(2), 83-89.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Suicidal behaviour 1: A search for methods in an ecosystemic paradigm. Complementary Medical Research, 6(1), 25-35.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Suicidal behaviour 2: the results of applying an ecosystemic research paradigm. Complementary Medical Research, 6(1), 36-45.
Aldridge, D. 1992 Physiologische Veränderungen beim Spielen improvisierter Musik. Musiktherapeutische Umschau 13(3), 174-186.
Aldridge, D. and Aldridge, G. 1992 Two epistemologies: music therapy and medicine in the treatment of dementia. The Arts in Psychotherapy 19, 243-255.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Healing and medicine. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 84, 516-518.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Spirituality, healing and medicine. Journal of British General Practice, 41, 425-427.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Aesthetics and the individual in the practice of medical research: a discussion paper. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 84, 147-50.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Single case research designs for the clinician. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 84, 249-252.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Die Musik und das Selbst: Eine phänomenologische Studie. Musiktherapeutische Umschau 12(2), 97-109.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Rhythmus in Rahmen der Musiktherapie, Perspektiven, 27, 21-52.
Aldridge, D. 1991 From out of the silence. Complementary Medical Research, 5(1), 17-22.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Single case designs: an extended bibliography. Complementary Medical Research, 5(2), 99-109.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Creativity and consciousness: music therapy in intensive care. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 18, 359-362.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Physiological change, communication and the playing of improvised music. Arts in Psychotherapy, 18 , 59-64.
Aldridge, D. 1991 Music therapy in intensive care. Intensive and Critical Care Digest, March 10(1), 10-11.
Aldridge, D. and Brandt, G. 1991 Music therapy and inflammatory bowel disease. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 18, 113-121.
Aldridge, D. and Brandt, G. 1991 Music therapy and Alzheimer's disease. Journal of British Music Therapy, 5(2), 28-63.
Brandt, G., Wohler, D. and Aldridge, D. 1991 Working together: a comparative study of creative music therapy and art therapy. Journal of British Music Therapy, 5(1), 14-21.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Meaning and expression: the pursuit of the aesthetics in research. Holistic Medicine, 5, 177-186.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Making and taking health care decisions. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 83, 720-723.
Aldridge, D. 1990 The delivery of health care alternatives. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 83, 179-182.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Pluralism of practice in West Germany. Complementary Medical Research, 4, 14-15.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Complementary medicine in Europe: some national perspectives. Complementary Medical Research, 4, 1-3.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Unkonventionelle Medizin und Gesundheitsversorgung in Europa. Natura Med , 5, 388-394.
Aldridge, D. 1990 The development of a research strategy for music therapists in a hospital setting. Arts in Psychotherapy, 17, 231-237.
Aldridge, D. 1990 Aus der Stille heraus. Perspektiven, 20, 64-70 .
Aldridge, D. 1990 An introduction to word-processing as a research tool. Complementary Medical Research, 4(3), 46-55.
Aldridge, D. Brandt, G., and Wohler, D. 1990 Toward a common language among the creative art therapies. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 17, 189-195.
Aldridge, D., Gustorff, G. and Hannich, H-J. (Editorial) 1990 "Where am I?" Music therapy applied to coma patients. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 83, 345-346.
Aldridge, D. 1989 Europe looks at complementary medicine. BMJ, 299, 1121-1122.
Aldridge, D. 1989 A guide to preparing a research application. Complementary Medical Research, 3, 31-37.
Aldridge, D. 1989 Intractable pain: a spectrum of hypnotherapeutic interventions. Journal of Neuroscience, 45, 161.
Aldridge, D. 1989 Music as identity. Journal of Neuroscience, 45, 162.
Aldridge, D. 1989 Music, communication and medicine. Royal Society of Medicine, 82, 743-746.
Aldridge, D. 1989 A phenomenological comparison of the organization of music and the self. Arts in Psychotherapy, 16, 91-97.
Aldridge, D. 1989 Research strategies in a hospital setting. Complementary Medical Research, 3 (2), 20-24.
Neugebauer, L., Gustorff, D., Matthiessen, P. and Aldridge, D. 1989 Künstlerin an der eigenen Biographie. Musiktherapeutische Umschau, 10 (3), 234-242.
Aldridge, D. 1988 Families, cancer and dying. Journal of the Institute of Religion and Medicine, 3, 312-322.
Aldridge, D. 1988 Goal setting: the patient's assessment of outcome and recognition of therapeutic change. Complementary Medical Research, 3, 89-97.
Aldridge, D. 1988 Holistic research in a hospital setting. Holistic Health, 18, 9-10.
Aldridge, D. 1988 The personal implications of change. Journal of the Institute of Religion and Medicine, 3, 310-312.
Aldridge, D. 1988 The single case in clinical research. Proceedings of the Fourth Music Therapy Research Conference. City University, London.
Aldridge, D. 1988 Single case research designs. Complementary Medical Research, 3, 37-46.
Aldridge, D. 1988 Treating self-mutilatory behavior: a social strategy. Family Systems Medicine, 6 (1), 5-19.
Aldridge, D. and Verney, R. 1988 Creative music therapy in a hospital setting. British Journal of Music Therapy, 2, 14-17.
Dallos, D. and Aldridge, D. 1988 Choice of pathology and systems of construing. Journal of Systemic and Strategic Therapies, 7, 27-41.
Prance, S., Desser, A., Wood, C., Fleming, J., Aldridge, D. and Pietroni, P. 1988 Research on traditional Chinese acupuncture - science or myth. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 81, 588-590.
Aldridge, D. 1987 A community approach to cancer in families. Journal of Maternal and Child Health, 12, 182-185.
Aldridge, D. 1987 Families, cancer and dying. Family Practice, 4, 212-218.
Aldridge, D. 1987 A team approach to terminal care: personal implications for patients and practitioners. Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 37, 364.
Aldridge, D. and Pietroni, P. 1987 Clinical assessment of acupuncture in asthma therapy. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 80, 222-224.
Aldridge, D. and Pietroni, P. 1987 Research trials in general practice: towards a focus on clinical practice. Family Practice, 4, 311-315.
Dallos, R. and Aldridge, D. 1987 Handing it on: family constructs, symptoms and choice. Journal of Family Therapy, 9, 39-58.
Pietroni, P. and Aldridge, D. 1987 Summary of discussion on BMA report. Holistic Medicine, 2, 95-102.
Aldridge, D. 1986 Licence to heal. Crucible, (April-June), 58-66.
Aldridge, D. and Dallos, R. 1986 Distinguishing families where suicidal behaviour is present from families where suicidal behaviour is absent. Journal of Family Therapy, 8, 243-252.
Dallos, R. and Aldridge, D. 1986 Change: how do we recognise it? Journal of Family Therapy, 8, 45-59.
Aldridge, D. and Rossiter, J. 1985 Difficult patients, intractable symptoms and spontaneous recovery. Journal of Systemic and Strategic Therapies, 4 (3), 66-76.
Aldridge, D. 1985 Children in distress. Crucible, (April-June), 67-76.
Aldridge, D. 1984 Suicidal behaviour and family interaction. Journal of Family Therapy, 6, 309-322.
Aldridge, D. and Rossiter, J. 1984 A strategic assessment of deliberate self harm. Journal of Family Therapy, 6, 119-132.
Aldridge, D. and Rossiter, J. 1983 A strategic approach to suicidal behaviour. Journal of Systemic and Strategic Therapies, 2 (4), 49-62.
Aldridge, D., Fachner, J., Schmid, W. 2006 Music, perception and altered states of consciousness. Music Therapy Today, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net/modules/mmmagazine/index.html.2006 ; VII(1):70-6.
Kunzmann, B., Gruber, H., Aldridge, D. and Weis, J. 2003 Eine Zusammenstellung von Studien/Veröffentlichungen über Künstlerische Therapien in der Akutmedizin und Onkologie. Music Therapy Today (online) 4, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2003 Music therapy and spirituality; A transcendental understanding of suffering. Music Therapy Today (online) 4, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2003 Breath in Healing. Music Therapy Today (online) 4, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2003 The 6th European Music Therapy Congress University of Jyväskylä. Music Therapy Today (online) 4, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. and Aldridge, G. 2002 Therapeutic narrative analysis: A methodological proposal for the interpretation of music therapy traces. Music Therapy Today (online) 3, 5, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2002 Research supervision: Developing a community of inquiry. Music Therapy Today (online) 3, 2, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2001 A review of references in the medicial literature. Music Therapy Today (online) 2, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Music therapy: performances and narratives. Music Therapy Today (online) 2, 1, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Music therapy and neurological rehabilitation: Recognition and the performed body in an ecological niche. Music Therapy Today (online) 2, 2, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2001 The creative arts therapies in the treatment of neuro-degenerative illness. Music Therapy Today (online) 2, 2, available at http://www.musictherapyworld.net.
Aldridge, D. 2001 Prayer and Spiritual Healing in Medical Settings: a research review. The International Journal of Healing and Caring online, 1,1.
Aldridge, D. 1999 Guidelines for Clinical Research. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy online at http://www.hisf.no/njmt/aldridgeguide.html.
1. This raises a culture-critical question pointing to the uniqueness of western society that favours a blending of mechanical, external time and the physiology of the individual, his outlook and feeling of identity in the sense of an embodiment of values and time of this western society (compare Aldridge 1992, 177)
2. In Greek mythology, Kairos is the god of the favourable moment, i,e, the historically significant, unrepeatable appropriate moment (for productive decisions); the fertile moment in the process of generation.
3. Personal time also is described as personal tempo and ""is reflected as a functional muscular reflex" (Aldridge 1991a, 104).
4. In a literature research on spirituality, healing and medicine Aldridge found that in healing processes it is of utmost importance to consider individual health beliefs. Individual opinions on the symbolic significance of illness contribute to the cognitive management of illness and therapy. Symbolic meanings are the loci of power whereby illness is explained and controlled (compare Aldridge 1991c, 426).