Skip to content

News

UNPACKING MUSIC THERAPY

Even in the face of trauma, every person has a healthy and creative core which music has the power to unlock. Music provides a non-verbal outlet for strong emotions associated with traumatic experiences.  When a child makes music, she is saying something about how she views herself.  This is why music therapy can play a significantly healing role. The music therapist listens to the musical sounds made by the child and reflects them back so each session creates and builds on an interpersonal relationship. Young people attending the MusicWorks Music Therapy programme individually or in small groups, experience a safe and caring space. This is the first building block to help a young person change his or her perception that life is about survival. In this short film, music therapists Sunelle Fouché and Karyn Stuart explain how music enables communication and emotional expression for children facing adversity.

A MUSICWORKS SONG! Written and performed by Lize Beekman

This is the story of MusicWorks and it has to be told and heard. It is the story of hope. It is the story of people who use music to open new worlds for children. It is the story of the power of music which gives children second chances. It is the story of children who are taught how to communicate even if they don’t have words. Through the generosity of a longstanding donor, MusicWorks today launches a commercial recording written and performed by well-known South African artist, Lize Beekman. Music has the power to change lives, especially where trauma and violence have disrupted lives. For singer and songwriter Lize Beekman the therapeutic impact of music is a reality she has experienced first-hand. Thus it was an obvious match between Beekman and MusicWorks, as we utilise music as a therapeutic tool to support traumatised, sick and disabled children in communities within broader Cape Town and the Cape Flats areas. MusicWorks has inspired Beekman to compose and record her first commercial song in almost four years. “This is How Music Works” tells the story of how children who have been numbed and silenced by trauma, disability or illness, are helped to find their voice through the… Read More »A MUSICWORKS SONG! Written and performed by Lize Beekman

Thank you Awesome Without Borders

We are thrilled to announce we are now a grantee of Awesome Without Borders! This chapter of the Awesome Foundation, gives $1 000 no-strings-attached weekly grants to awesome initiatives worldwide. This grant will enable 7 young people to each receive a full music therapy process.  To learn more about Awesome Without Borders, click here. This is what Awesome Without Borders had to say about MusicWorks: “All you need is love…in the form of music! And MusicWorks is making sure Cape Town’s youth are receiving no shortage of the stuff! The dynamic non-profit uses music therapy to unearth the buried treasure inside the minds of young people distraught with social & economic hardships. With MusicWorks, they don’t just learn to play instruments; they learn to play themselves…” To read more, click here. MusicWorks sends a heartfelt thanks to the wonderful people at Awesome Without Borders!

Gumboot Dance Workshops

Captivate your child with the excitement of Gumboot Dance whilst giving the same opportunity to children on the Cape Flats!    Gumboot Dance Workshops is an exciting music programme developed by MusicWorks’ music therapists and community musicians. The Workshops are based on our VIP Principles: Children are Very Important (little) People who should have their contributions Validated, as well as have an opportunity to Initiate creatively and be Playful.  The programme focusses on pre-schoolers (3-6 years) and includes Gumboot Dance songs and routines, as well as musical techniques that encourage creative and physical development in young children. Whether the children are learning the steps to a Gumboot dance, contributing sounds and movements to a story-song, or experimenting on a drum, the VIP activities adapt to the age appropriate levels of creative play. The programme not only develops children’s singing, dancing and rhythmic abilities, but also enhances gross motor function. Furthermore, the songs are sung in Xhosa, English and Afrikaans which exposes children to Cape Town’s cultural diversity. We have piloted this programme at ‘Kidz on Board’ in Sea Point, with high praise from both teachers and parents. We are currently looking to expand this programme in other schools on the Atlantic Seaboard. The cost for… Read More »Gumboot Dance Workshops

Singing to a new tune

Sound the trumpets! Drumroll please…and blow those vuvuzelas! On the 10th of February 2014, the Music Therapy Community Clinic becomes MusicWorks! [gap height=”20″] Welcome to our new website – which tells the story of how MusicWorks uses the power of music to unlock potential in the lives of children and young people in Cape Town. Since 2003 we have conducted pioneering work in the field of Music Therapy in marginalised communities, for which we have received recognition both locally and abroad. We‘ve developed a practice that is unique to the South African context, adapted to the needs of our beneficiaries and which embraces the musical and cultural diversity of this country. Our work over the past decade has enforced our belief that music is a social resource, with the profound ability to strengthen and heal individuals, as well as communities. We’ve chosen a new name for the organisation that echoes this: We know that music works – we bear witness to this in our various programmes every day. The new logo is a visual representation of our work. The circle within a circle symbolises a pulse or beat – the music within us and around us to which we all respond. Different colours and sizes… Read More »Singing to a new tune