As Professor Emeritus from Montclair State University and a retired faculty member from the University of Louisville, Barbara Wheeler has shaped the field of music therapy for decades. I have had the honor to get to know her in the past couple of years and realized how wonderful of a person she is and I would like to offer this short piece about her.
I first met Barbara in person in Katowice last year at a conference we both attended. By then we knew about each other through various online events and initiatives. I admired her work as an author, editor, and world-renowned music therapy leader, and she had come to know me for my work on communications for the International Association for Music and Medicine.
Barbara’s Discovery of Music Therapy
Barbara explains how she initially discovered music therapy in a podcast with Luke Annesley. As an undergraduate music education major, she was not very excited about teaching music. However, during her senior year, she was asked to play the organ and direct the choir at the state mental hospital in her town (Hastings [Nebraska] Regional Center), which sparked her interest in music therapy. She realized she loved working with people who had particular problems, and this drew her to the field of music therapy, even before she had formal training.
After her initial exposure to music therapy, Barbara went on to receive her music therapy equivelency and master’s degree at Florida State University. She then worked at a large state hospital in Georgia (Central State Hospital), where she was part of a music therapy department with around 24 people, including Registered Music Therapists as well as music therapy aides and performers. Barbara says that this was a fabulous learning environment for her early career, providing her with substantial professional stimulation and growth opportunities.
Dr. Wheeler describes her own approach to music therapy as truly eclectic, drawing from various theoretical frameworks and training experiences over the course of her career, including behavioral, psychodynamic, and Nordoff-Robbins approaches. She emphasizes that her learning and development as a music therapist has been an ongoing process, involving extensive training, workshops, her own psychotherapy, and a variety of clinical experiences with diverse client populations.
Professional Background
Barbara holds the designation of Professor Emeritus from Montclair State University, where she taught from 1975 to 2000. After leaving Montclair, she moved to Kentucky and initiated the music therapy program at the University of Louisville in 2000. She retired from that position in 2011 and moved to the New Jersey shore.
Barbara has held visiting faculty appointments at the Department of Social Studies, University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt in Würzburg, Germany, and the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland. Although both of these positions have changed over the years, she is still regularly involved in teaching in these programs as well as at other institutions. Among other long- and short-term teaching and consulting relationships, Barbara has worked since 2016 as Consultant and Advisor to the Music and Wellness Program, Beijing Easeland Health and Technology Co., Ltd., in Beijing, China, helping them incorporate music into their spa (wellness) program.
Throughout her career, Barbara has worked as an active clinician, engaging with diverse clientele. Her recent clinical experience includes working with hospitalized patients, particularly in the fields of oncology and rehabilitation. Barbara’s clinical expertise and hands-on experience enrich her teaching and research endeavors.
Leadership Roles, Recognition and Awards
Barbara Wheeler has held prestigious leadership positions within the music therapy community. She was on the Council of the World Federation of Music Therapy (1999-2002, 2007-2008) and Chair of the Commission on Education and Training (1999-2002). She served as President of the American Music Therapy Association from 2008-2009. She has served on numerous editorial board and was Discussion and then Interview Co-editor for Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy, serving from the years 2001-2013 in the two positions. Her leadership contributions have helped shape the profession and promote the importance of music therapy worldwide.
Barbara’s outstanding contributions to the field have earned her well-deserved recognition. The World Federation of Music Therapy honored her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017, followed by a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Music Therapy Association in 2019.
Barbara’s Involvement in Music Therapy Research and Publishing
Barbara edited Music Therapy Handbook (with the second edition, with additional editors, in press) and coauthored Clinical Training Guide for the Student Music Therapist (published in two editions). Barbara’s first and arguably most important contribution to the music therapy literature has been through three editions of music therapy research books. Barbara edited and has overseen three editions of the Music Therapy Research book, which she describes as a major undertaking to compile and synthesize the field’s research. Barbara has also discussed her perspectives on the value and limitations of both quantitative and qualitative research approaches in music therapy.
Music Therapy Research: Third Edition
A greatly expanded, updated, and detailed description of objectivist and interpretivist research in music therapy, guided by the recommendations of a diverse group of experienced music therapists. The book begins with an introduction to the nature of music therapy research and its relation to theory and practice. Steps in doing research are then detailed, and the foundations and principles of objectivist and interpretivist paradigms are outlined. After methodological issues inherent in each paradigm are examined, individual chapters are provided for every type, method, and design of research that has been used in music therapy, all using the same outline. Finally, guidelines are given for reading, writing, and evaluating research.
Barbara’s Retirement and Continued Involvement in Music Therapy
Barbara Wheeler retired from full-time teaching around 2011. While she initially intended to step away from music therapy, she has continued to remain actively involved, including editing books, teaching as an adjunct, and maintaining an international teaching and consulting practice.
Stay Tuned for More!
I am pleased to say that I have been working with Barbara on some joint projects. She recently visited me in Heidelberg and we have some things that will soon see the light of day. Stay tuned!
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