Hey, how’s it going? My name’s Jacob Wilson, but that’s a mouthful and the only time people call me Jacob is when they’re mad at me, so I just go by Jake. Having been certified in May of 2021, I am a relatively new professional come to work for Rhythm Garden Music LLC as a staff music therapist.
Much to my parents’ dismay, I started my musical journey at a young age with a drum set. As much as I may have learned from flailing around in my living room, formal education began when I joined middle school concert band. Well, my fingers were too small for the saxophone, and I couldn’t buzz my lips to play the trumpet, so again I turned towards the drums. There I stayed throughout high school, participating in jazz band, marching band, and occasionally orchestra pit. Along the way I dabbled in other instruments, but one notable example is the guitar. Sometime in the 7th grade I helped a friend move and was gifted a guitar, whereupon I proceeded to teach myself 5 chords and never touch it again until college.
I came into music therapy by chance; I didn’t know what I wanted to do after high school, but I was interested in psychology, put a lot of time into music, and was the “therapist” of my friend group. A family friend mentioned the music therapy program at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. The next four years of my life were a wonderful whirlwind of more band, theatre, and choral experiences, lessons of all kinds, and Music Therapy education. With all this learning came an interest in various styles of music. I started to look into the use of percussion in other cultures, popular music outside the U.S, and delve deeper into other styles of guitar playing.
Finally, I graduated from SMWC in 2020 and started my internship with Dynamic Music Services in Indianapolis. While at DMS, I worked with individuals with various physical/developmental disabilities on the Indiana Medicaid Waiver. With the combination of diverse clients and supervisors, I really learned who I am as a professional and how I use music in my sessions. After my internship and subsequent certification, I spent a year continuing to work with individuals on the waiver, further developing my therapeutic style and approach. Now, as a staff music therapist with Rhythm Garden Music LLC, it is with renewed vigor and a little trepidation that I look forward to working with clients a little closer to my hometown.
5 interesting facts:
- Outside of work I am an avid gamer of all mediums be they video games, board games, tabletop RPGs, or traditional games. I’m almost always down to play cards or dominoes.
- My biggest hobby at the moment involves spending too much money on small, unassembled plastic figures, putting them together and painting them with small brushes for hours, all while dreaming about one day playing the game they are associated with.
- I have spent a few summers teaching high school marching percussion in Vermillion County and I have played drums for a handful of theater productions around the Wabash Valley.
- My favorite instrument to play right now is the guitar. It’s such an expressive instrument and I am constantly finding new sounds. I have been slowly learning aspects of classical and flamenco guitar playing.
- While I enjoy most genres of music, I think I have a soft spot for alternative or indie rock as I keep going back to it year after year. That being said, I do love me some Caribbean music, particularly Reggaeton and Salsa.
-Jacob Wilson, MT-BC
