History

The Center for Music Therapy began as a dream of a young girl in the 1970s. That dream became a lifelong focus and purpose for the founder and owner of The Center for Music Therapy, Inc., Hope Young, MT-BC. In 1990 Ms. Young's practice began in Austin, TX where she serviced St. David's Hospital programs while simultaneously servicing most of the area’s psychiatric hospitals such as CPC Capital Hospital and Charter Hospital. Ms. Young served her internship at Travis State School and furthered that experience to serve the developmentally disabled community throughout Austin to its expanding group homes and consumers. Ms. Young also had a private office where she held group and individual music therapy sessions in which she treated children, adolescents, adults and seniors. She also provided consultation, assessment, and trainings to public schools, treatment programs and corporations all around the state.

In 1995, Ms. Young hired her first full time employee, Karen Epps Miller, MT-BC. Ms. Miller now heads Sam Houston State University's Music Therapy Program. Between 1995 and 2000, the Center's staff grew to 21 music therapists that served hospitals, nursing homes, public schools, group homes and various outpatient and wellness programs throughout the state of Texas.

In 2001, the Center for Music Therapy, Inc. was officially renamed and incorporated. With the incorporation of her company, Ms. Young led a refocus of the company to bring it back in line with her original dream of  an  innovative facility where people from all over the community could come and be empowered to transform their life through music. Ms. Young created a place where music therapists are challenged to continually stretch their clinical skills into what she termed a "full spectrum" approach to music therapy. The Center continues to work with infants, children, adolescents, adults and seniors, and is continually striving to do so in a more creative, efficient and effective manner.

Since its beginnings in 1990, the Center has partnered and provided services, workshops and trainings for many corporations, systems and individuals. These organizations included but are not limited to Biodex Medical Corp., The University of Texas at Austin, The University of St. Augustine, Merging Technologies, Neve Designs,  Dell, SAS Institute, IBM Special Services for children, Motorola, Hermann Memorial, NARAS (GRAMMY’s), Santa Rosa Hospitals, St. David's Hospital, Warm Springs Rehabilitation,  Texas Neuro Rehabilitation, Austin Groups for the Elderly, Capital Area Parkinson’s Society, Parent to Parent, Autism Speaks, all the surrounding school systems, ATCMHMR, DARS, and HIMMS’s (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society and Austin City Up (Smart City Consortium) .

Today the Center is one of the most technologically advanced music therapy facilities in the world.  It’s treatment spaces are sensory enhanced spaces with a specialized gait lab featuring Biodex Medical Systems Gait Trainer 3 system.  Utilizing advanced sensors and software that measures and tracks a patient’s balance, strides and consistent control of your movements.  We then synchronize  music personalized to drive improvements in your walking which you can see  in real time with  measureable reports (EMR-electronic medical records) electronically sent to you, your doctor, insurance provider,  family and others invested in your treatment and improvements.  We also utilize transducer technology built into our treatment rooms so clients can feel music and sound through bone conduction while also using special lighting controls to adjust the sensory environment to each adult and child’s needs. These are only a few examples of the ways we are working to innovate new treatments and technologies so our clients can reach new expectations and potentials in their lives.  We do so by continuing to lead the field in new ways to meet the demand for music therapy and its related services. In its 28 year history, we have led our field in making music therapy more accessible and synchronizing the power of music with human potential for all those who want and need it.  We intend to do so more powerfully  well into our next 28 years and beyond.