In a young girl’s heart
How the music can free her
Whenever it starts
And it’s magic if
The music is groovy
It makes you feel happy
Like an old-time movie
“Do You Believe in Magic” was written by John Sebastian, originally performed by The Lovin’ Spoonful and then becoming a 100 Top Forty Hit when MY BIEB, Shaun Cassidy in 1978
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“We all have a BIEB”- I said to the group of 55+ individuals sitting in my circle. I described what a Bieb was…” A Bieb is a music personality that seems to rise up from no where, becoming an instant sensation – best identified by screaming 13 – 15 year olds.”
My group all smiled and nodded their heads, “Yes, we definitely had a Bieb.” With little prompting I heard familiar names such as “Buddy Holly” “Elvis Presley” ” Bob Dylan” and the familiar group of Bieb’s “The Beatles.’
Now before you get all upset about me comparing Justin Bieber to the above list of musicians. I am not comparing talent but I am suggesting that there seems to be some musicians that become something even bigger than their music – Mozart could fall in this category.
What happens when you identify so strongly with a musician or group? Well you never forget them and this can help you as you age. One of my staff, Karina Szulc is a superstar when it comes to working with seniors. She has been doing so for over 20 years and has her own definition of using music to reach deep seeded memories – she calls is Musicognitive Stimulation (MCS). MCS is a set of music therapy interventions that spark early memories based on the neuroplasticity concept (condition of the brain for re-organzing and re-adapting functionally) that can conserve musical functions. MCS is a specialized assessment and contains the identification of “key songs.”
We have discussed the many “key songs” in our Living Soundtrack and the importance of taking time to think about them, reflect on them and more importantly experiencing them again. We can open doors to communication and tune into our core. As we age and our external world begins to change, our internal world becomes increasingly valuable to us. Getting to know your Bieb is just one more concept to think about.
Here’s mine:
Oh and if you are interested in becoming the next chart topping sensation then this website is for you!
Question: Who’s Your Bieb – send a link to video if you can!
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Jennifer Buchanan is the happy owner of JB Music Therapy, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2011. Our “Music Speaks” Blog: 50 Musical Motivators for 2011 (MMs) aims to Help you Relax, Reflect and Remember what you Value Most
