Process of cross-cultural integration

I am Zoe, an explorer whose music therapy (MT) journey has travelled across Asia, America, and Europe. I was born in Taiwan, where I learned about both western and eastern music. Four years ago, I decided to pursue the Bachelor of Arts in Music Therapy at Berklee College, Boston, USA where I could nourish my MT knowledge in this fantastic program at the cross-road of scientific research and clinical work.

During the stay in the US, I learned about clinical music therapy skill in diverse settings including nursing homes, children hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, and special education schools. I also actively participated in both regional and national conferences, e.g.: I presented in the New England Region of the American Music Therapy Association Conference, Westbrook, CT. April 2018 with the topic of “The Story of the Me2/ Orchestra: Building a Stigma-Free Zone with Music”. Because of my particular cultural background, I volunteered in Chinatown with Chinese speakers. Work in different language and culture taught me to respect and develop competencies to integrate diverse cultures for effective music intervention.

Today, I am pursuing the Master of Arts in Music Therapy at the SRH University Heidelberg located in Germany. My focus is to acquire research skills and reinforce music therapy as an evidence-based practice. Out of school, I developed a pilot program for a local German nursing home to provide therapeutic music for people with dementia. This project is being a growth experience that widens my music therapy skills as a cross-cultural music therapist who works in multiple languages.

There is no doubt that more and more people want to learn music therapy but lack of established music therapy program in many countries. I would like to connect with people around the world and create a better place with healing power of music!

Zoe Yu Jung Weng

Hometown: Taiwan

School: SRH University Heidelberg