Aaron Lightstone MMT, RP, MTA- Founder
Aaron Lightstone, MMT,RP, MTA is an award-winning musician, music therapist and educator.
Aaron is the first music therapist to use a tele-health infrastructure to conduct remotely delivered music therapy. In 2010, with funding from Veterans Affairs Canada ( VAC) Aaron began providing music therapy sessions with a veteran of the Canadian military who was living with severe & chronic PTSD. The participant lived over 1400km away with therapy sessions conducted as video conferences. A retrospective case study was presented as a poster and podium presentation at a number of peer-reviewed conferences in 2012. In early 2015 this case study was published as a case study in the Arts and Health: An International Journal of Research, Policy and Practice. This is the first description of tele-health music therapy in the academic literature.
Aaron is a Registered Psychotherapist ( RP) with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario ( CRPO). He is also a Fellow of the Academy for Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT-F) . He has a particular interest in the use of NMT for the treatment and rehabilitation of acquired brain injures. Aaron is a regulated health care provider and licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO), to provide rehabilitation services to individuals injured in motor vehicle collisions . Contact Aaron to find out how neurologic music therapy (NMT) can be an integral part of a comprehensive neurologic rehabilitation program related to a neurologic injury or disease.
During the past twenty years of professional music therapy work he has developed extensive experience working with individuals (and their families and caregivers) who are:
Aaron's practice focuses on Neurologic Music Therapy (a form of neuro-rehabilitation) and Music Psychotherapy ( a form of psychotherapy based in the musical interactions between therapist and participant). He is a Fellow of the the Unkefer Academy of Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT-F).
Aaron is a pioneer in the music therapy technique of clinical recording. This is the process of creating high quality recordings with in the context of a therapeutic process, and is often used with youth to explore issues related to difficult emotions, gender and identity, family of origin issues, and traumatic experience. Aaron's Master's thesis in music therapy focused on his work creating Hip Hop recordings with teens and young adults living in a shelter for homeless youth. This research has recently been published as two chapters in the world's first academic textbook on the Therapeutic Uses of Rap and Hip Hop.
Music therapy (particularly when it involves creating original music), leverages the powerful connection that exists between young people and music to create opportunities for creative expression, development of insight, learning life and skills.
In addition to his work as a music therapist Aaron is a respected member of Canada's community of professional musicians. Along with his band-mates in the award-winning group Jaffa Road he has toured coast to coast to coast to perform at numerous North American music festivals and concert venues. Jaffa Road has been nominated for two JUNO awards, won WORLD MUSIC GROUP OF THE YEAR at the CANADIAN FOLK MUSIC AWARDS (2013) and has won other awards such as the John Lennon Song Writing Contest, the Toronto Independent Music Awards and Folk Music Ontario's "Songs from the Heart" Song writing contest. More recently Aaron worked as a record producer on the song "The Crown Sleeps" by Qais Essar and Joshua Hill, featured in the OSCAR nominated film THE BREADWINNER, this song won Best Song at the 2017 Canadian Screen awards. Along with his Jaffa Road band mate and writing partner Justing Gray, Aaron recently completed the composition and production of six new music care albums for the Room 217 Foundation. These culturally specific albums are designed to be calming for palliative care patients and their care givers.
In addition to his experience as a music therapist performing and recording artist Aaron spent a year in the 1990's working as the ethnomusicologist in residence at the St. Lucia School of Music, where he conducted an in-depth, commissioned research project on indigenous Caribbean folk music.
Aaron is the first music therapist to use a tele-health infrastructure to conduct remotely delivered music therapy. In 2010, with funding from Veterans Affairs Canada ( VAC) Aaron began providing music therapy sessions with a veteran of the Canadian military who was living with severe & chronic PTSD. The participant lived over 1400km away with therapy sessions conducted as video conferences. A retrospective case study was presented as a poster and podium presentation at a number of peer-reviewed conferences in 2012. In early 2015 this case study was published as a case study in the Arts and Health: An International Journal of Research, Policy and Practice. This is the first description of tele-health music therapy in the academic literature.
Aaron is a Registered Psychotherapist ( RP) with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario ( CRPO). He is also a Fellow of the Academy for Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT-F) . He has a particular interest in the use of NMT for the treatment and rehabilitation of acquired brain injures. Aaron is a regulated health care provider and licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO), to provide rehabilitation services to individuals injured in motor vehicle collisions . Contact Aaron to find out how neurologic music therapy (NMT) can be an integral part of a comprehensive neurologic rehabilitation program related to a neurologic injury or disease.
During the past twenty years of professional music therapy work he has developed extensive experience working with individuals (and their families and caregivers) who are:
- are in rehabilitation as a result of a traumatic brain Injury
- in the final stages of terminal illness / palliative care
- people who are living with a Dementia type illness (eg. Alzheimer's disease)
- adults and children living with an Autism Spectrum Disorder
- people living with severe physical disabilities
- teenagers and adults in addictions recovery programs
- children and teens with ADHD, learning disabilities, and emotional/ behavioral problems
- individuals who have suffered traumatic experiences such as sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and neglect
- elderly/ aging military veterans
- recovering from a mental illness
- student Music Therapists in training programs
- survivors of Canada's residential school system.
Aaron's practice focuses on Neurologic Music Therapy (a form of neuro-rehabilitation) and Music Psychotherapy ( a form of psychotherapy based in the musical interactions between therapist and participant). He is a Fellow of the the Unkefer Academy of Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT-F).
Aaron is a pioneer in the music therapy technique of clinical recording. This is the process of creating high quality recordings with in the context of a therapeutic process, and is often used with youth to explore issues related to difficult emotions, gender and identity, family of origin issues, and traumatic experience. Aaron's Master's thesis in music therapy focused on his work creating Hip Hop recordings with teens and young adults living in a shelter for homeless youth. This research has recently been published as two chapters in the world's first academic textbook on the Therapeutic Uses of Rap and Hip Hop.
Music therapy (particularly when it involves creating original music), leverages the powerful connection that exists between young people and music to create opportunities for creative expression, development of insight, learning life and skills.
In addition to his work as a music therapist Aaron is a respected member of Canada's community of professional musicians. Along with his band-mates in the award-winning group Jaffa Road he has toured coast to coast to coast to perform at numerous North American music festivals and concert venues. Jaffa Road has been nominated for two JUNO awards, won WORLD MUSIC GROUP OF THE YEAR at the CANADIAN FOLK MUSIC AWARDS (2013) and has won other awards such as the John Lennon Song Writing Contest, the Toronto Independent Music Awards and Folk Music Ontario's "Songs from the Heart" Song writing contest. More recently Aaron worked as a record producer on the song "The Crown Sleeps" by Qais Essar and Joshua Hill, featured in the OSCAR nominated film THE BREADWINNER, this song won Best Song at the 2017 Canadian Screen awards. Along with his Jaffa Road band mate and writing partner Justing Gray, Aaron recently completed the composition and production of six new music care albums for the Room 217 Foundation. These culturally specific albums are designed to be calming for palliative care patients and their care givers.
In addition to his experience as a music therapist performing and recording artist Aaron spent a year in the 1990's working as the ethnomusicologist in residence at the St. Lucia School of Music, where he conducted an in-depth, commissioned research project on indigenous Caribbean folk music.
Kelly Lafaive BMus. - Rehabilitation Support Worker
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Kelly Lefaive is a violinist, singer-songwriter, teacher and aspiring music therapist based in Toronto, Ontario. She is currently a student at Wilfrid Laurier University in the Masters of Music Therapy Program (MMT), where she is a recipient of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship. Originally from Penetanguishene, Kelly’s co-leads the traditional French-Canadian family band Ariko and is a founding member of Trille Or winner Georgian Bay.
Since graduating from the University of Toronto jazz program on violin in 2011, Kelly has worked as a freelance musician, touring with various artists in Canada and Europe and the US. Kelly’s musical interests range from swing era jazz, popular music, and folk genres specializing in Canadian traditional fiddle music, Mexican mariachi, and Brazilian forro. Performance highlights include playing Massey Hall with David Beckingham, performing at the Harbourfront Centre with Ariko, and the Much Music Video Awards with Ed Sheeran. |
