Playing musical instruments

This guidance shows you how you can make playing musical instruments accessible and enjoyable.

Music can be a wonderful part of our lives, and how exciting it is also to be able to make the sound yourself!

A lot of instruments look pretty inaccessible to someone with severe physical disabilities. I would like to offer you some of the ways I have found to make instruments accessible to people with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities (PMLD).

What you need

A few instruments that make a really pleasing or satisfying sound
A place to make the instruments reachable such as a wheelchair tray, table, floor or large drum
or
Something to hang the instrument from safely – an instrument stand or clothes rail and some long strings or shoelaces.

Choosing musical instruments to use

For people with limited motor control or hand use:

Instruments that make a great sound when they are nudged: bells, windchimes, ethnic instruments made from natural materials.

Maracas are generally disappointing when nudged, but can be good if hung up next to something like a tambourine so they bump together to create a sound.

For rolling games:

Egg shaker, shekere (gourd with beaded net around it), rainstick, or anything else that makes a good sound when it rolls.

Tambourine or drum – things to consider:

Choose one with a textured surface, so it makes a good sound if rubbed or scratched.

For people who need highly visual experiences there is also a tambourine on the market with a holographic head.

Guidance and instructions

Identify which parts of the body the person is able to move and control most easily and is interested in using.

Don’t assume it is their hand – they may have more control over their foot, elbow or even their head.

Choose the instrument with the person you are supporting.

Do make sure you are using instruments the person likes the sound of. You may like the bells but they may not. You may not be sure what to do with something, but the person you are working with might be really interested in discovering through exploration and play.

Spend time exploring the instruments themselves.

Give the person time to choose which instrument they want to explore. Offer a variety – one at a time if needed, to see which ones they are genuinely interested in. Make the sound as well as showing them the instrument.

Five effective ways to play instruments:

1. Rolling or tilting instruments

Lots of people struggle to hold an object, but this need not stop them playing an instrument. Anything that rolls – an egg shaker, maraca or rainstick can be pushed across a wheelchair tray, table, floor or large drum. Then you can play ‘ready, steady, go’. Or maybe you could sing a song, leaving time for the person you are working with to make a sound effect at the end of every line. This is a good way of introducing or exploring taking turns.

You can also put lightweight rolling instruments inside a hand drum, or roasting tin – something with edges. Support the container or ocean drum loosely but safely in the middle so it can tilt. Then the person can nudge it from underneath or above to make the contents roll to the other side. Turn it round and repeat for as long as it is fun!

2. Dropping instruments

If someone has difficulty with their grip and tends to drop things, make it a game: drop bells or shakers onto a drum (or something that makes an equally satisfying sound).

3. Use one instrument to play another

People who have difficulty with aim or strength can enjoy using one instrument to sound another. For example, you can use a maraca instead of a drum stick. If you miss the drum, you still get a rewarding sound. If you do hit it – you get double the reward.

4. Hang up the instruments

Hang up the musical instrument so that it is right next to the hand, foot or elbow, so that it is in the line of fire for the movement they can make most easily.

Long shoelaces work well for this, but long pieces of string or ribbon would also be fine. Make sure to hang them up with long strings so they can swing well.

Consider hanging up one instrument so it can be knocked against another e.g. a maraca against a drum. Or hang up a tambourine with something next to it so they bump into one another. Hang the instruments on separate strings because if they are both tied to one string, they just swing together and won’t knock into one another.

5. Use instruments in playful interactions, for example:

Take turns to make sounds.
Sing a song you both know, leaving pauses before key words for the person to fill with a sound before you continue – if they want to!
Introduce musical instruments and sounds into intensive interaction sessions if you do them.

Processing time and supporting regulation

Be aware of and attentive to need for processing time and regulation throughout.

Is the person most interested and engaged when there are lots of music and sounds happening, or do they need time to process each individual sound?

Do they need extra time to organise themselves to make their sound? Do make sure you give them this time so they can experience success, and so you can see what they can really do.

Consider use of background music and whether this helps to set the atmosphere, or is it overwhelming?

Think about what kind of mood the person is in. Do they need to make or hear slow, peaceful music, or do they need something fun and up-beat? Do they need something sad, or something dramatic? How are they able to tell you or show you?

If using music with strong emotions, however, do keep a close eye on when they need the music to change.

A useful rule of thumb: if someone needs or wants to be relaxed, music where the beat is slower than the person’s heartbeat is often a good choice. To increase energy, or support someone to feel animated, music that is faster than the heartbeat is often a good choice.

However, our responses to music are very individual. One person’s relaxing music may be very irritating for someone else. Explore what music the person likes or has meaning for them.

Please don’t be afraid to try something new, as long as you stay tuned in and responsive to what the person is telling you through their non-verbal communication and adjust the experience to work with their processing and regulation needs.

What to observe, assess and record

Is the person interested in exploring any of the instruments?

Which sounds or games arouse their curiosity to explore?

How do they show you their preferences?

What instrument sounds is the person drawn to? Is this consistent or does it vary depending on how they are that day? Do they like to have new experiences, or do they like to explore the same object every time?

Notice when they discover new things about instruments and what they can do with them.

Is the person more motivated by exploring the object or by the interaction with you, or both?

Do they sometimes like to watch you play rather than play themselves?

Do they like to feel the instrument while the sound is vibrating in it?

Do they prefer exploring the instrument in their own way and in their own time, or do they prefer games and songs that they can contribute to?

Has their exploration and play developed over repeated sessions. If so, how?

What could you offer to support this process, but without taking over? What worked and what did not? How could you change what you are doing to open up new discoveries for the person you are with?

What emotional reactions do you notice throughout the experience?

Final thoughts

Most importantly, however, don’t worry about doing it ‘right’. If it is fun and safe and not causing distress, it is ok.

It’s one thing to watch and listen to someone else play. It’s quite another to be able to have the sense that – “I did it myself!”

Created May 2024