Meena Gupta, who has been a counsellor for 30 years, was working at CanSupport, an organisation that works for people with cancer, when she first became interested in the role music plays in healing. Now, the 56-year-old works at the NGO as a co-ordinator/trainer where she conducts music therapy sessions.

“I joined CanSupport in 2003 where I was involved in setting up a helpline for cancer patients. At that time, I thought that as a counsellor I was giving coping skills to the patients, but there has to be something more that I can do in order to make healing a better process for the patients. I was doing art and play therapy but then two years ago I started using music therapy for children in the age group of 3 to 13,” she says.

Gupta conducts music therapy sessions every Monday at CanSupport in RK Puram. “A number of musical instruments such as a xylophone, drum, tabla are kept on the floor and then I weave a story around them, making use of various sounds. For instance, there is a whistle made of clay that can be used to narrate the story of Pied Piper. It makes it interactive for children and very soon, they take a liking to the instrument and start enjoying it.”

The sessions last for approximately an hour and a half. “Music has a therapeutic effect and in the case of children it is the best way. It gives them an outlet to vent their feelings. Children, who are suffering from cancer, have no idea what it is all about, they see so many medicines, syringes, they are in pain. And they don’t even know how to channelise those feelings and emotions. It is through music that they are able to express themselves. It also helps in the case of children who are either very withdrawn or very aggressive,” she says.

Gupta cites the example of a nine-year-old girl who was very aggressive. When she was given a xylophone, she would beat it crazily, giving vent to her anger. After a few sessions, says Gupta, she calmed down. In another instance, music therapy helped a child who kept to himself open up to others.

Different children need different instruments. “If a child is withdrawn, then he should not be given something very loud, he won’t like it and if a child is showing signs of aggression, he should not be given an instrument which has low tones. Instead, she should be given something sturdy,” she says.