What is Rhythmic Entrainment? and Why is it Important in Music Therapy? This is the first of a four part series about rhythmic entrainment in music therapy.
- Rhythmic Entrainment In Music Therapy for motor planning – part 2 of 4 on 4/10/2014
- Rhythmic Entrainment in Music Therapy to Assist in Language Development – part 3 of 4 on 4/17/2014
- Rhythmic Entrainment in Music Therapy to Promote Social Awareness – part 4 of 4 on 4/24/2014
I have been a music therapist for nearly 20 years and I have seen a lot and learned a lot. I have seen children and adults that appear to be unaware or disconnected from the world around them start to connect to music and through the music be able to connect with the world around them.
It was a typical physical therapy session; the PT was supporting the elderly stroke rehab patient and trying to explain to her that he wanted her to shift her weight by crossing one leg over the other. The move he wanted from her is a common dance step called the grapevine and is used in a lot of traditional country dances. I was observing the session and I could see that no matter how many times he demonstrated or explained, she couldn’t understand what he wanted her to do. I had already been working with the patient and it was the PT’s first time with her so I knew her background and I asked him if I could help and when he agreed, I started slowly singing “Hava Nagila” a traditional Israeli song that is used to dance the “Hora.” It was as if a light bulb had gone off in her brain, she was able to move, with assistance and over time was able to walk and move independently. This is an example of rhythmic entrainment. Through the music she was able to make connections in her brain which then helped her ability to walk, to talk and to think more clearly.
We are surrounded by rhythm, from the movement of the earth through space, to the clicking of the clock there is rhythm. As humans, we are rhythmic beings and this is the area that I want to focus on in this post. I use rhythmic entrainment techniques as an important part of the multi-sensory approach that I discussed in the last blog series (read Sensory Integration, Not Just for Autism Spectrum Disorders).
Rhythmic Entrainment in music therapy is a specialized practice used to assist in helping people become more “in tune” to their own rhythm and the rhythms of the world around them. 
Entrainment is a physics term that is used to explain that two objects moving together use less energy than two objects moving in opposite directions, so even when they are moving differently, if they are placed next to each other will, over time, begin to move together in synchronicity. This is often seen in a drum circle, when one person starts the rhythm and the others are able to match the pattern and either duplicate it or augment it. Music therapists often work with individuals that are “out of sync” with the rest of the world, this may be due to a genetic condition such as developmental delays, cerebral palsy and autism, or traumatic brain injury, stroke, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In these circumstances music therapists take this physics phenomenon and use it as an intervention to help people become more aware of their personal rhythms and those of the world around them.
The lub dub of a heart beat is the primary rhythm in our bodies and it controls the circulatory system which runs throughout the body and oxygenates the blood. The oxygenated blood travels to the brain which controls the central nervous system and tells the body how and when to move. When we are excited or nervous our respiration and circulation rate increase and when we are quiet or sleeping they slow down. This is an automatic response of our bodies.
Most of us are born with the ability to sense rhythm and even move our bodies to match that rhythm. For example when I want to exercise I listen to fast music and when I want to relax, I listen to slow music. My brain hears the different tempos and my heart rate begins to match those tempos.
For individuals with sensory processing differences, rhythmic entrainment in music therapy can help organize thought patterns, speech development, and motor planning issues. Many of these people appear to be withdrawn or self-absorbed, but, through rhythmic entrainment techniques we can help them to connect to their own body rhythms and gives them a non-verbal way to connect with other group members.
People with Cerebral Palsy may be very rigid and not be able to move their bodies to the rhythm due to physical limitations, but they still benefit from rhythmic entrainment techniques because their bodies are still functioning rhythmically at the circulatory and cellular level. Studies in Neurologic Music Therapy have shown that the brain can still perceive rhythmic stimulus even below the threshold of consciousness.
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