Note-Able Music Therapy Services Transforming Lives One Song At A Time
Photo courtesy of Note-Able Music Therapy Services.
When we think of therapy, a lot of us have preconceived notions about it. There’s such a stigma around mental health still, but in a post-pandemic world, awareness around it seems to be much more prevalent on social media in recent years, from Tik Tok to LinkedIn. And it’s for good reason too – according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), one in five adults experience mental illness each year, one in six youth aged six to 17 years old experience mental illness each year and 50 percent of all mental illness begins by age 14, 75 percent by 24 years old. If we’re going to tackle issues of mental health, we have to begin breaking down social barriers earlier rather than later.
For Note-Able Music Therapy Services, this goes even a step further, as they work with a variety of populations — from adults and children with disabilities, patients in hospitals that may be recovering in the ICU or from a stroke, people who were previously incarcerated, employees in wellness programs and more.
“The kids have not bounced back and I don’t think any of us have really,” Manal Toppozada, Founder and Executive Director of Note-Able said. “There’s such a huge need in this community for all sorts of things… we play such a unique role, and even with all the people we see and all the things we’re doing, we’re barely scratching the surface of meeting the need.”
“Especially being home for so long and not having access … not being able to see people and interact… it really took a toll on people’s relationships with each other,” David McKenzie, Music Therapist at Note-Able said.
As if quarantines were hard enough as an adult, I can’t even imagine what the children of the COVID era went through. Missing proms, quitting sports, losing friend groups. It’s a challenge for us all to grieve the lingering impact on our community, but for children the scope may be ever-present. For me, music was one of the only things that got me through the pandemic, and with music therapy services like Note-Able, they’re hoping to continue to make a difference for patients and clients as they face renovating a 17,000-square foot building, program cuts and the recurring issue of funding that a lot of nonprofits have to deal with.
“We have a huge identity crisis in the community because people think of us as The Note-Ables and the band and the visible part of what we do… that’s just a fraction of the work that we do in the community,” Toppozada said. “Music therapy itself has so many misconceptions of who we are and what we do… there’s a lot of community education.”
“People might come to music therapy not quite understanding what it is, in their mind they might have sort of a picture of just how it’s going to be,” McKenzie said “Trying to have an open mind, and giving yourself the opportunity to say, ‘this is your time, this is your space’... let yourself kind of explore and go with it.”
So Wait, What is Music Therapy?
The American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) defines music therapy as:
“…The clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional, who has completed an approved music therapy program. Music therapy interventions can address a variety of health and education goals:
Promote wellness
Manage stress
Alleviate pain
Express feelings
Enhance memory
Improve communication
Promote physical rehabilitation
And more.”
Note-Able Music Therapy Services started as a music class in 1999, became a performing group called The Note-Ables, and then in 2003 they made the jump to nonprofit in order to serve a growing number of people with disabilities who wanted to participate, demand for performances and a lack of music therapy in Reno. They didn’t use their current name until 2012, but had been providing music therapy since their inception. Their current services include neurologic music therapy, guided imagery and music, classes and adaptive lessons and they still continue to perform throughout the Reno area and beyond.
“Our little guys with autism, people with disabilities, especially, their whole lives are being looked at through a lens of pathology. So what you can’t do, etc,” Toppozada said. “When you really know and understand how to use music, with people you see parts of themselves that you never ever would see.”
“[Music] requires you to listen to each other, and figure out how to relate to each other, and you end up creating this really special experience,” McKenzie said. “That’s something that they can take with them when you leave, if you can help them build these relationships with each other, I think it’s all the better for their overall mental health and wellbeing.”
Photo courtesy of Note-Able Music Therapy Services.
Music Therapy Reno: A No Judgment Zone
Surrounded by instruments of all kinds, Toppozada and McKenzie’s heart for serving the community was evident as they described some of their favorite memories assisting kids in hospitals, a show on Broadway in New York and helping people with disabilities connect with their peers. Common themes here were self-exploration and expression, building relationships and the opportunity to try something new, even if you aren’t an instant Jimi Hendrix.
“We have so much fear and baggage around making music, especially singing with our voices in this culture, we always talk about there’s no judgment. We’re going to allow ourselves the freedom to fail, and the freedom to explore,” Toppozada said. “Just remember that music belongs to every human on this planet. Be more welcoming and open and inclusive.”
“We tend to value and sit on a pedestal of music… Beethoven and Mozart, it’s great music but we play it over and over again… in some ways that sort of ignores the potential and chance for all of us to be in the space of creating something valuable, I think that is often overlooked,” McKenzie said. “I love giving people the opportunity to play different instruments and to try stuff, to a trained musician's ear it can sound very chaotic, but for the people who are participating in the moment, it’s a chance for expressing ourselves together.”
The Future Of Note-Able Music Therapy Services In Reno
There’s big things coming for Note-Able Music Therapy Services, as they’re hoping to have the grounds of the new building done in the next 18 months. They want to turn it into a regional center for music and health that can be used as a national model, with an amphitheater.
“Music therapy is relatively new and it’s relatively rare, we are a unique beast in the way that we exist in the community,” Toppozada said. “We want this to be a space where, if you're a new mom, if you're newly diagnosed with autism, or whether you're 80 years old who just had a stroke, you're welcomed and honored and celebrated.”
The Note-Ables will be holding a concert for Artown on July 28th and they hope to start doing tours of the new space over the summer by appointment only.
To learn more about Note-Able Music Therapy Services, visit this link here.
