Rachel Rambach, Zeta Xi - Rollins
1) How did you get into the music business? At what age did you realize your talent and that you wanted to pursue a career of some kind in music? -- I started playing the piano when I was 5. I realized when I was 10 or 11 that I had a talent for singing, and it was at that time that I got involved with musical theater and performing, both at school and in the community. I did this through high school, and realized that I wanted to pursue performance as a career. I got a music scholarship at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla., where I majored in voice performance.
2) What led you to work in music therapy? -- I was assigned a research project about different careers in music in one of my college courses, and as I began my research, I just happened to stumble across an article about music therapy. I had never heard of it as a bona fide career field, and was instantly intrigued. Upon further research, I realized that was the right career for me. I wanted to use my talents to help people. My professor encouraged me to pursue this, and set me up with a music therapist in town to job shadow. I graduated college 1.5 years early so that I could attend graduate school at Illinois State University for music therapy, and after two years of coursework and a 9-month internship in St. Louis, I took the certification exam and became board-certified.
3) Tell me about your career as a music therapist. Who do you work with? What is the process? -- I work at a residential school for children with multiple disabilities, called The Hope Institute for Children & Families in Springfield, Ill. My position was grant-funded at first, and I was the first music therapist ever to work there. I designed the program and continue to head it up 2.5 years later. I go into all 15 classrooms, where I work for 30 minutes weekly with all of the students in a group setting. I use music to address non-musical skills, including cognitive, emotional, social, and physical goals. I write almost all of the songs I use, and they are each written with goals in mind for my students. I also use instruments, books, recorded music, and other props to teach my students skills through music. In addition to my work at Hope, I also have a private practice, Music Therapy Connections. I have a home studio, where my students come for small group and individual music therapy sessions. I also teach guitar, voice, and piano lessons to students with and without special needs.
4) Why is music a good tool for therapy? Is there an age it works better with? Who benefits from music therapy? -- Music is a good tool for therapy because almost everyone enjoys and responds to music positively. Music can facilitate connections that dialogue and other means of communication cannot. I have found that there isn't a certain age group or population that responds to music therapy moreso than others; it really depends on the individual. There are so many different facets of music therapy, and it can be used for countless populations. Just a few include children with disabilities (autism, down syndrome and other developmental disorders); children with behavioral, emotional and social problems; senior citizens with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia; stroke victims; people who have been abused or undergone any kind of trauma; people with mental illness; prisoners; hospital patients ranging from newborns in the NICU to people in hospice...the list goes on and on.
5) Tell me about the song you wrote for the KD Founders' Day event in Springfield, Ill. What was your inspiration? -- My inspiration for the KD song was the memories of my amazing experience as a Kappa Delta in the Zeta Xi chapter at Rollins College. Beyond the wonderful friendships and social events, being a part of KD really instilled in me the values that are the backbone of the sorority, and that I sing about in the song.
6) Do you have a certain process to follow when writing songs? -- I usually start with a core idea for what I want the song to be about. Then I just start writing whatever comes to me, so I don't always write the first verse and then go from there in order. Lots of times, the chorus will come out first, and I will rearrange the lyrics to make sense once I see how the song should take form. Usually as I write the lyrics, a melody will just kind of manifest itself, but I wait until I have written and arranged the lyrics to actually write out the melody and guitar chords. I do almost all of my writing using my guitar.
7) Tell us about the Hope Institute. You have written more than 100 melodies/tunes for them. How has this evolved? -- When I first started working at The Hope Institute, I had a hard time finding songs and resources that my students could relate to. After all, many of them have very severe disabilities and special needs, and the materials I needed just weren't out there. So I started creating my own. Each and every song I write is based on the work I do at Hope, and they all stem from a goal I am working on with a particular individual or class. Over my 2.5 years there, I have amassed quite a collection of original songs, and you are right - there are over 100 at this point! I am just continually inspired by my students, and the well never seems to run dry.
8) You are also a blogger! Do you blog as a part of your job or is blogging just a personal thing? How do you incorporate your music into the blogs? -- I am a blogger, indeed. I started blogging when I realized that I had all of these songs, but no one was hearing them aside from my students and the staff at Hope. I wanted a way to put them out there and to offer them up to other music therapists and educators who use music to reach their clients and students. A blog seemed like the easiest way to do that, so I started Listen & Learn. I post the audio file of my songs along with the lyrics, so people can listen and follow along with them right on the site. I also include instructions for using the songs, and ideas to incorporate them into music therapy sessions or lesson plans. I try to post four to five times a week. Little did I know that it would grow to have readers all over the world, many of whom email me to tell me how my songs impact their students and children. The blog is my own personal thing, but the faculty at Hope knows all about it and is 100 percent behind it! They even share my posts with their Facebook fans. This past week I attended the national music therapy conference and gave a presentation called "Music Therapy in the Blogosphere" for other music therapists who are interested in starting their own blogs. I have inspired several others to start blogging, and Listen & Learn has served as a model for many of them.
9) What are your career goals? -- My career goals are to spread the word about music therapy as far as I can. Every music therapist is an advocate of the field, and I feel like as much as I can offer to students through direct service, I can reach so many others around the world through my blog and other forms of social media. I have started giving presentations about the music therapy program at Hope in the hope that other schools will follow suit and hire their own music therapist so that other children can benefit from music therapy. I also want to continue creating resources for other music therapists, educators, and parents. I contribute my music and other resources to Songs for Teaching and am even a guest blogger for their new blog, so I would love to continue doing that. I have also contributed to Model Me Kids, a company that produces modeling videos for children with autism and other disabilities. I recently wrote and recorded original songs to narrate their video, Model Me Faces and Emotions, and there are more collaborations with them in the works! In addition, a Listen & Learn songbook containing my original songs was just published and is for sale on my blog. Whatever I can do to extend my knowledge and skills to others, I want to pursue.
10) How has Kappa Delta helped you in your life and your career? -- Through Kappa Delta, I met some of my best friends. They were there for me through college, attending all of my performances and supporting my musical endeavors. I am so thankful for Facebook and email, because we are all over the country (and world!) at this point. They understand my mission, and are eager to tell everyone they know about music therapy and refer them to me for more information. A number of my KD friends also donated funds to a CD project that I am doing - I raised over $2,000 to professionally record and give away a CD made specifically for children with disabilities. I take the values of friendship and service that I learned in KD with me everywhere I go, and apply them to everything I do in life. One great memory is seeing several entire rows of my KD sisters at my senior voice recital. They all came out to support me, and it meant the world. Another great memory, or memories, I should say, is performing in all of the skits and competitions on campus. Some were serious, involving lots of rehearsal time, and some were just plain silly, but I loved coming together to create something fun that also spread KD's message and raised money for our charities.
13) Besides being your career, is music a part of your off time also? What are your hobbies, etc? -- Yes, music is my life!! Although it is my career and I spend my days writing songs and helping children through music, I also pursue musical hobbies in my spare time. I have made a name for myself in my city as a performer, and I love having that outlet. I am also really interested in music technology and recording and am in the process of creating a recording studio in my home (both for work and fun). In addition, I sing with my church choir, and am on the children's music staff at my church. I love performing in musical theater throughout the community, too. But I do have other hobbies, including working out, reading, and hanging with my golden retriever, Sadie, and husband, Zach.
14) Do you volunteer in your community, if you have free time? If so, what kind of volunteering? -- I do volunteer! This weekend, I am actually volunteering for our local radio station's radiothon, which benefits the Children's Miracle Network and St. John's Children's Hospital. I wrote two original songs to serve as the background for two families to tell their stories involving what CMN did for their children, and they will be aired during the radiothon. What I have found is that I can offer my talents in so many different ways and help various organizations throughout the community.