Music Therapy Clinician: Supporting reflective clinical practice Volume 1 | Page 40

RECENT PUBLICATIONS Guitar Music For The Mid-Life Crisis (Music: Why We Listen, Why We Play) John Foley, MT-BC Unlikely as it sounds, ‘Guitar Music for the Mid-Life Crisis (Music: Why We Listen, Why we Play)' was probably the shortest title that would do justice to the book. Much of the focus is on “Music: why we listen, why we play” but the book got its start when I found myself in a predicament: I wasn’t that interested in music anymore. After years of seeing music as pastime, job, career and, maybe, obsession, I found himself playing only when I had to and not listening with any real interest. I started with this premise: when we try to fix something, it helps to know how it worked when it was functioning properly. Looking into the science and history of music and its effect on humans I was surprised to find how deeply entwined music was in our lives. Even when we’re not singing, the pitch and rhythm of everyday speech can change the meaning of our words. The difference between “Let’s eat, Rover” and “Let’s eat Rover” is not just a matter of punctuation. Music saved that dog’s life. I've traveled and recorded with Rock bands and accompanied folksinger Oscar Brand, sharing stages with Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Odetta, Richie Havens and the famous “many others”. Some of those experiences found their way into the book. Lots of people have enjoyed books like ‘Zen in the Art of Archery’, ‘Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance’ and ‘Fly-Fishin Through the Mid-Life Crisis’ without being specifically interested in those subjects. Those books looked at life through a certain lens and a lot of people were interested in the search. Just about everyone relates to music on some level. The book is written for casual listeners, serious fans and musicians alike. There’s some interesting information about the guitar but there’s plenty of time spent on other instruments plus songs, singing and music in general. And as far as “mid-life”, I took that to mean not the "midpoint" but "somewhere in the middle", which is where a lot of us are. In the meantime, if you read the book and can think of a shorter title, please let me know. Contact: [email protected] Published by Outskirts Press, Inc. 38 | P a g e