I started my career in occupational therapy, working in hospital and rehabilitation settings for 3 years. Over this time I grew increasingly frustrated with the medical paradigm and after working alongside a music therapist I decided to pursue this as a post-graduate masters training. Music had always been a lifeline for me, so I was drawn to using it to help others.

I first started playing violin as a child in the classical tradition, but was soon introduced to English folk-dance music and saw a community that was more about participation than performance. Later I discovered bluegrass music and eventually landed in the Southern Appalachian string-band (also called old-time) tradition. This is a genre of North American folk music embedded in traditional community dances and gatherings in the Southern Appalachian regions of the USA and using acoustic stringed instruments; most often fiddle, banjo, guitar and double bass. In this genre I discovered a strong community and a sense of belonging. This music and the people I met through it brought me to the U.S. where I have ultimately settled. I hope to be a part of reviving this music and dance tradition for today, breathing life into community spaces.

As a UK licensed music therapist (and working towards Board Certification in the USA) I have worked in schools, care homes and in my own private practice with children and adults with a wide range of physical, intellectual and/or emotional needs/disabilities. I have a trauma-informed approach having worked for many years with vulnerable children in adoption services.

I not only use music in my work. Many other modalities can be helpful; story-telling, sand-tray, puppetry and other play-based therapeutic approaches. I have managed projects that promote mental wellbeing through nature and wildlife conservation (working with adults with mental health needs) and carpentry (working with women in the criminal justice system or otherwise vulnerable). The main therapeutic approaches I draw from are IFS (Internal Family Systems) which recognizes how we are all made up of constellations of different parts, DDP (Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy), mindfulness, and somatic body-focused approaches.

Alongside my music therapy work I have also performed and taught at various music camps and festivals both in the US and the UK. I love the way this folk tradition is built on community, bringing us together, something I believe we need more than ever in today’s world.

You can find my music at beccawintle.bandcamp.com