Nicky Haire is a music therapist, musician and lecturer on the MSc Music Therapy programme at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. She enjoys collaborative arts-based reflexive approaches to enquiry and is currently exploring queerness and humour through improvisation in music therapy practice. becky Lockett is an experienced improvisation scholar, music therapist, HE educator and musician. She currently performs as 'the unruly trombonist' entangling trombones, field recordings and found objects. becky is Senior Lecturer in Counselling Psychology at the University of Wolverhampton.
Description
What if improvising in music therapy is not something you 'do', but rather a way of being? Improvisation sits at the heart of the discipline yet can often be diminished to techniques and exercises rather than explored as an ethical, relational, and creative stance. Reframing this conversation, we ask what it truly means to improvise therapeutically and why that matters. Written by two experienced educators and researchers, the book is rooted in dialogue as therapists and musicians, improvisers and teachers, and between theory and lived practice. Through encounters reflecting themes of embodiment, deep listening, risk, and play, it offers a nuanced understanding of presence, attunement, and co-creation in clinical work. Grounded in real-world experience across diverse settings and age groups, this is both a resource and a provocation. It will resonate with those seeking a deeper, more rigorous exploration of how spontaneous music-making can shift emotional tempo, build resonance, and support change.