What is Nordoff Robbins Approach?
The Nordoff Robbins Approach is a type of creative music therapy developed for use with individuals with psychological, physical, and/or developmental disabilities. It is an improvisational and compositional approach to individual and group therapy that resulted from the pioneering teamwork of Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins over a period of 17 years. The approach is based on the belief that everyone possesses a sensitivity to music that can be utilized for personal growth and development.
In this form of treatment, clients take an active role in creating music together with their therapists — music is made with people, not for them. The method draws on ideas from Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophy, and emphasises active engagement in music-making in an aim to support communication, self-expression, and personal development. Unlike traditional music therapy models that may emphasize receptive listening or skill acquisition, the Nordoff Robbins Approach centers on the co-creative musical relationship between therapist and client.
Origins & Lineage
The approach was developed in 1958 by American composer and pianist Paul Nordoff and British special education teacher Clive Robbins. Dr. Paul Nordoff was a graduate of the Philadelphia Conservatory of Music and the Juilliard Graduate School and was Professor of Music at Bard College from 1949 to 1958, receiving honors for his work as a composer including the Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship and the Pulitzer Traveling Fellowship. Dr. Clive Robbins was a special education teacher who was searching for a new way to reach the children with whom he worked that could unlock their dormant potential.
The two met in 1958 when Nordoff performed at the Sunfield Children’s Home, a UK anthroposophical residential facility where Robbins worked, and after witnessing the effects of Nordoff’s performance on the residents, Robbins and Nordoff began collaborating on a new form of music therapy. Nordoff and Robbins developed this approach for practical clinical purposes while working with the children at Sunfield Children’s Home in 1959. The threefold relationship of Paul Nordoff, Clive Robbins and Herbert Geuter (meeting in Sunfield Children’s home) gave the work such a strong impact.
Following a lecture-demonstration tour and a survey of facilities in Britain and Europe, Nordoff and Robbins began their American work in 1961 with pilot projects at the Day Care Unit for Autistic Children, Department of Child Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, and the Devereux Foundation. Beginning in 1962, the project included treatment, training, research and publication, representing the first NIH grant given to study music therapy with children with autism. For the next seven years Nordoff and Robbins combined international travel, teaching, and demonstrating with writing their three major books: Therapy in Music for Handicapped Children, Music Therapy in Special Education, and Creative Music Therapy.
The London base of their work was established in 1974 when they conducted a Preliminary Training Course for an international group of students, and in 1975 they initiated a One-Year Graduate Diploma Course at the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre, approved by the Department of Education and Science. Paul Nordoff died in 1977 in Germany after an illness. In 1989, Clive Robbins and his wife, Carol Robbins, established The Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy at the Steinhardt School at New York University. Dr. Robbins remained active in the Center’s clinical and training programs until his passing in December of 2011.
How It’s Practiced
Sessions typically involve composing music, including improvisation using instruments or voice. Therapists use a variety of conventional and specialized instruments and clients do not need to have prior musical skill or training. The approach employs a two-person team model in which one therapist plays piano (or other instruments) while a co-therapist engages directly with the client, though solo practice is also common.
As an experienced composer and gifted pianist, Paul Nordoff brought quite new resources and techniques to meet the special needs of a wide range of disabled children through his creative use of piano and vocal improvisation as a medium of communication and relationship. The therapist’s observations of each individual’s interaction with and response to all the elements of music — including tone, modes, dynamics, rhythm, register, touch, and other components — inform the development of customized music therapy sessions. The therapist uses improvised music and lyrics to develop a co-creative partnership, building relationships through the music.
The practice is both artistic and scientific: artistic in the creativity and aesthetic sensitivity with which therapists create music to meet individual client needs; scientific in the thoroughness with which the video recording of each session is studied and documented to effect ongoing assessment and treatment planning. Sessions are typically recorded on video for supervision, training, and research purposes, enabling detailed analysis of musical and therapeutic processes.
Nordoff Robbins Approach Today
Training programs based on the Nordoff Robbins approach are offered in several countries, with established centers in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Germany, New Zealand, and South Africa. The UK organization offers a Master of Music Therapy as a two-year, masters-level programme validated by Goldsmiths, University of London, with training bases in London, Manchester and Newcastle. Centers offer music therapy for individuals with a range of disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder, behavioral disorders, developmental delays, sensory impairments, multiple handicaps, and psychiatric conditions. Individual therapy services are also available for adults who may be struggling with particular life trauma or who are seeking an active form of therapy in which to pursue self-actualization.
Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy is a significant presence in the field of music therapy, with hundreds of certified practitioners and several training and research centers worldwide. Contemporary practice extends the original work with children to include adults in geriatric care, individuals with dementia, and those experiencing grief and trauma. Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins maintained a scientist-practitioner model, focusing on measuring gains occurring in sessions as well as innovative clinical techniques. The Nordoff-Robbins Center possesses a large archive of recordings from the work of Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins through the current generation, with over 650 digitized music therapy sessions.
Common Misconceptions
The Nordoff Robbins Approach is not music education or skill development — clients are not being taught to play instruments correctly or to perform for others. No one is being taught, no one is being fixed. The approach does not require clients to have any prior musical ability, training, or even verbal capacity. It is not entertainment or recreational music-making, though joy and play are often present.
While the approach was originally designed for children with developmental disabilities, it is not limited to this population. Contemporary practitioners work with adults, elderly individuals, and people experiencing emotional or psychiatric difficulties. Though the method draws on ideas from Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophy, practitioners need not subscribe to anthroposophical philosophy; the clinical techniques stand independently of any spiritual framework.
The approach is also not simply “playing music with clients.” It requires extensive training in clinical musicianship, improvisation technique, and the ability to respond therapeutically in real time to subtle musical and behavioral cues. Practitioners hold graduate degrees in music therapy and have completed an additional post-graduate advanced clinical training program in the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy approach.
How to Begin
For those seeking treatment, referrals are made by parents, health care specialists, counseling services, or other treatment or educational agencies, though some adults are self-referred. Contact the Nordoff-Robbins Center at New York University or Nordoff and Robbins UK to inquire about services or to locate a certified therapist.
For music therapists or musicians interested in training, centers offer three levels of training: fieldwork experience for internships and fieldwork placements for individuals pursuing academic degrees in music therapy; post-graduate certificate training in the Nordoff-Robbins approach; and evening seminars and extended summer courses in which music therapy professionals may earn continuing education credits.
The foundational text remains Creative Music Therapy, authored by Paul Nordoff and Clive Robbins, revised and republished in 2007, which remains a core text for music therapy students. Additional seminal books include Therapy in Music for Handicapped Children (1971) and Music Therapy in Special Education. Video archives of clinical sessions are available through the Nordoff-Robbins centers for study purposes. Short introductory courses and summer intensives provide entry points for those curious about the approach without committing to full certification programs.