Musical communication X verbal communication: understanding musical overloading

*Correspondence: [e-mail].

Abstract

Background: One of the greatest demands of music therapy is children who, despite their language delay, show excellent musical expression, reproducing different repertoires, easily memorizing new material and singing for very long periods of time, with no interaction with peers or communication. verbal. This musical overloading, by activating potent dopaminergic circuits, becomes one of the great challenges for the music therapist, who needs to break them down to stimulate structures in brain areas that are important for the development of verbal communication.

Objective: Analyze the development of verbal communication in children with language delay who use music to communicate with others.

Methods: Documentary, retrospective and comparative analysis of music therapy assessments included in patients' medical records over a two-year period of care. The medical records of patients of both genders, with an initial age between three and four years, with language delay and musical expression sung at the time of evaluation were considered.

Results: In 100% of the analyzed cases, the patients used music as an auditory comfort zone, which was reinforced by family members who reported not being able to get other forms of interaction (75%), therapists from other specialties (85%) and at school (45%). Cases were identified in which the patient had started with musicalization (80%) and this was suspended due to the increase in the time and intensity of the non-functional singing. Some families (85%) reported having started music therapy with another professional, who was suspended due to increased patient agitation after the session (55%) or decreased interaction with peers (35%). It was observed that the development of verbal communication occurred together with the decrease in the patients' singing time after breaking the comfort zone performed in the music therapy intervention (90%). Patients with a frequency of three individual consultations a week showed faster evolution (six months) compared with patients seen only once a week (one year).

Conclusion: The identification of pathological musical response patterns is essential for the success of music therapy interventions. Therefore, the evaluation of the music therapist becomes fundamental for guiding the family, pedagogical and therapeutic team that accompanies the patient. In this way, functional response patterns will be enhanced and will help the patient in their development with greater functionality when using musical resources.

 

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Publication History

Article published online:
12 May 2025