Biography
- Postgraduate Diploma, harpsichord performance, Royal College of Music, London
- PhD, music, University of Sheffield, U.K.
- BM, music therapy, University of Melbourne, Australia
Dr. Wendy Magee’s research and teaching interests stem from a long career as a Music Therapy clinician in neuro-rehabilitation with adults with complex needs from acquired brain injury and neuro-degenerative disorders. Her primary research areas lie in Disorders of Consciousness; measurement; evidence-based music interventions in health; identity; and new and emerging technologies used in healthcare. She is a Cochrane Reviewer, with 45 publications in international peer-reviewed journals spanning music therapy, neuroscience, and interdisciplinary healthcare, two edited books, journal editing, 32 book chapters, and training manuals that have been translated into Spanish, Chinese and Portuguese. She has an extensive international teaching and conference portfolio: she has given invited keynote addresses at international conferences in North America, South America, Europe, Australasia, and Asia (South Korea and China) and has led training courses in advanced clinical practice in each of these continents.
From 1990-2011 she worked at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in London, UK and pursued a range of research with adults with neurological conditions including traumatic brain injury, stroke, Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Huntington’s Disease, Disorders of Consciousness, and Locked-in Syndrome. More recently her research has expanded to pediatric Disorders of Consciousness. She is a former Fellow in Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT) and has advanced clinical competencies in working with complex populations.
Selected service roles include: former Chairperson of the British Society for Music Therapy (2006-11); Board of Directors of the International Association of Music and Medicine (2014-present); editorial boards of The Journal of Music Therapy (2006-2012); Music Therapy Perspectives (2011-19); Australian Journal of Music Therapy (Associate Editor) 2006-11; the British Journal of Music Therapy (2005-10; 2014-present); grant reviewer for the National Endowment for the Arts. She formerly represented the Association of Professional Music Therapists within numerous committees of the Allied Health Professions Forum for the Health and Care Professions Council, UK. She is actively involved in the International Brain Injury Association - Disorders of Consciousness Special Interest Groups (Diagnosis; Treatment).
Honors include a Leverhulme Trust Study Abroad Fellowship (UK), during which she held a visiting professorship at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA (2009-10). She has been awarded the American Music Therapy Association Flagler Fultz Research Award (2015) and the American Music Therapy Association Professional Practice Award (2012) in recognition for contributions to research, professional practice, and service for the profession of Music Therapy.
Works and Publications
Books
Magee, W.L., Tillmann, B., Perrin, F., Schnakers, C. (Eds.). (2017). Music and disorders of consciousness: Emerging Research, Practice and Theory. Lausanne: Frontiers Media. doi: 10.3389/978-2-88945-099-2
Magee, W.L. (Ed.). (2013). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Magee, W.L., Lenton-Smith, G., & Daveson, B. (2015). Music Therapy Assessment For Awareness In Disorders Of Consciousness (MATADOC): Assessment Manual and Instructions For Use (2nd edition). Philadelphia, PA: W.L. Magee.
Magee, W.L., Lenton-Smith, G., & Daveson, B. (2014). Herramienta de Musicoterapia para la Evaluación de la Conciencia en Trastornos de la Conciencia. [Music Therapy Assessment Tool For Awareness In Disorders Of Consciousness (MATADOC): Assessment Manual and Instructions For Use. London: Royal Hospital For Neuro-Disability]. Philadelphia, PA: W.L. Magee. (Original English work published 2012).
Selected Peer-Reviewed Journals
Magee, W.L. (2018). Music in the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of people with prolonged disorders of consciousness, Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 8(8), 1331-1339.
Magee, W.L., Clark, I., Tamplin, J., Bradt, J. (2017). Music interventions for acquired brain injury. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2017, Issue 1. Art. No.: DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD006787.pub3 (Impact Factor 6.103)
Magee, W.L., Tillmann, B., Perrin, F., Schnakers, C. (2016). Editorial: Music and disorders of consciousness: Emerging Research, Practice and Theory. Frontiers In Psychology, 7, 1273. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01273.
Schnakers, C., Magee, W.L., & Harris, B. (2016). Sensory stimulation and music therapy programs for treating disorders of consciousness. Frontiers of Psychology, 7, 297. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00297
Pool, J., & Magee, W.L. (2016). Music in the treatment of children and youth with disorders of consciousness: a review of the literature. Frontiers In Psychology, 7 (202). doi: 10.3389/fpsyg/2016.002002
Magee, W.L., Siegert, R.J., Taylor, S.M., Daveson, B.A., & Lenton-Smith, G. (2016). Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): Reliability and validity of a measure to assess awareness in patients with disorders of consciousness. Journal of Music Therapy, 53(1), 1-26. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00297
Magee, W.L., Ghetti, C. & Moyer, A. (2015). Feasibility of the music therapy assessment tool for awareness in disorders of consciousness (MATADOC) for use with pediatric populations. Frontiers of Psychology, 6, 698.
Magee, W.L., & Stewart, L. (2015). The challenges and benefits of a genuine partnership between Music Therapy and Neuroscience: A dialog between scientist and therapist. Frontiers of Human Neuroscience, 9:223.
Magee, W.L. & O'Kelly, J. (2015). Music therapy with disorders of consciousness: current evidence and emergent evidence-based practice. The New York Academy of Sciences, 1337, 256-262. doi: 10.1111/nyas.12633
Magee, W.L., Siegert, R.J., Lenton-Smith, G; Daveson, B.A., & Taylor, S.M. (2014). Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): Standardisation of the principal subscale to assess awareness in patients with disorders of consciousness. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 24 (1), 101-124.
Burland, K. & Magee, W.L. (2014) Developing identities using music technology in therapeutic settings. Psychology of Music, 42 (2), 177-189.
O’Kelly, J. James, L., Palaniappan, R., Taborin, J., & Fachner, J., & Magee, W.L. (2013). Neurophysiological and behavioural responses to music therapy in vegetative and minimally conscious states. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 7:884. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00884
Magee, W.L., Baker, F., Daveson, B., Hitchen, Kennelly, J., Leung, M., Tamplin, J. (2011). Music Therapy Methods with Children, Adolescents and Adults with Severe Neurobehavioural Disorders. Music Therapy Perspectives, 29(1), 5-13.
Magee, W.L., Bertolami, M., Kubicek, L., LaJoie, M., Martino, L., Sankowski, A., Townsend, J., Whitehead-Pleaux, A. & Zigo, J. (2011). Using music technology in music therapy with populations across the life span in medical and educational programs. Music and Medicine, 3(3),146-153.
Miranda, E.R., Magee, W.L., Wilson, J., Eaton, J. & Palaniappan, R. (2011). Brain-Computer Music Interfacing: From Basic Research to the Real World of Special Needs. Music and Medicine, 3(3), 134-140.
Ansdell, G., Davidson, J., Magee, W., Meehan, J. & Proctor, S. (2010). From “This F***king Life” to “That’s Better”… in Four Minutes: An interdisciplinary exploration of music therapy and affect modulation. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 19(1). 3-28.
Hitchen, H, Magee, W.L. & Soeterik, S. (2010). Music therapy in the treatment of patients with neuro-behavioural disorders stemming from acquired brain injury. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 19(1). 63-78.
Magee, W.L. & Bowen, C. (2008). Using Music in Leisure to Enhance Social Relationships With Patients With Complex Disabilities. NeuroRehabilitation, 23(4), 305-311.
Magee, W.L. & Burland, K. (2008). An exploratory study of the use of electronic music technologies in clinical music therapy. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 17(2),124-141.
Magee, W.L. & Burland, K. (2008). Using electronic music technologies in clinical practice: opportunities, limitations and clinical indicators. British Journal of Music Therapy, 22(1), 3-15.
Magee, W.L. (2007). Music as a diagnostic tool in low awareness states: Considering limbic responses. Brain Injury, 21(6), 593-599.
Magee, W.L. (2007). A comparison between the use of songs and improvisation in music therapy with adults living with acquired and chronic illness. Aust. Jnl of Music Therapy, 18, 20-38
Magee, W.L. & Andrews, K. (2007). Multi-disciplinary perceptions of music therapy in complex neuro-rehabilitation. Int. Jnl of Therapy and Rehabilitation, 14(2), 70-75.
Magee, W.L. (2006). Electronic technologies in clinical music therapy: a survey of practice and attitudes. Technology and Disability, 18(3), 139-146.
Magee, W.L (2005). Music therapy with patients in low awareness states: assessment and treatment approaches in multidisciplinary care. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 15(3-4), 522-536. Impact factor 1.212
Magee, W.L., & Davidson, J.W. (2004). Singing In Therapy: Monitoring Disease Process In Chronic Degenerative Illness. Brit Jnl of Music Therapy, 18(2), 65-77.
Magee, W.L., & Davidson, J.W. (2004). Music Therapy In Multiple Sclerosis: Results Of A Systematic Qualitative Analysis. Music Therapy Perspectives, 22(1), 39-51.
Magee, W.L., & Davidson, J.W. (2002). The Effect Of Music Therapy On Mood States In Neurological Patients – A Pilot Study. Jnl of Music Therapy, 39(1), 20-29.
Davis, G. & Magee, W. (2001). Clinical improvisation within Neurological Disease: exploring the effect of structured clinical improvisation on the expressive and interactive responses of a patient with Huntington’s Disease. Brit. Jnl of Music Therapy, 15 (2), 51-60.
Magee, W. (1995). Case Studies in Huntington’s Disease: Music Therapy Assessment and Treatment in the Early to Advanced Stages. Brit. Jnl of Music Therapy. 9(2), 13-19.
Selected Book Chapters
Magee, W.L. (2018). Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). In S. Jacobsen, E. Waldon & G. Gattino (Eds.). Music Therapy Assessment, (pp. 392-409). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Magee, W.L. & Wosch, T. (2017). Technology developments in music therapy. In S. Federici & M. Scherer (Eds.) Assistive Technology (2nd Edition) (pp. 457-470). London: Francis & Taylor.
Magee, W.L. (2017). Music-making in therapeutic contexts: reframing identity following disruptions to health. In R. MacDonald, Miell, D. & Hargreaves, D. (Eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Musical Identities (pp. 624-641). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Magee, W.L. (2016). Mixing Objectivist and Reflexive Methods in Music Therapy Research. In B. L. Wheeler & K. Murphy (Eds.). Music Therapy Research: 3rd Edition, (pp. 84-91). Dallas, TX: Barcelona Publishers.
Magee, W.L., & Heiderscheit, A. (2016). Interdisciplinary Research. In B. L. Wheeler & K. Murphy (Eds.). Music Therapy Research: 3rd Edition, (pp. 608-613). Dallas, TX: Barcelona Publishers.
Magee, W.L. (2014). Using electronic and digital technologies in music therapy: the implications of gender and age for therapists and the people with whom they work. In K. Stensæth (Ed.). Music, health, technology, and design. (pp. 227-242) Oslo: NMH-publications.
Magee, W.L. (2014). Indications and contra-indications for using music technology with clinical populations: when to use and when not to use. In W. L. Magee (Ed.). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings, (pp.83-107). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Magee, W.L. (2014). Models for collaborations when using music technology in music therapy. In W. L. Magee (Ed.). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings, (pp. 361-386). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Magee, W.L. & Wimberly, D. (2014). Gender-technology relations in the training and practice of music technology in therapeutic settings. In W. L. Magee (Ed.). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings, (pp. 311-326). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Bache, J., Derwent, G., Magee, W.L. (2014). An introduction to using assistive devices in music therapy. In W. L. Magee (Ed.). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings, pp. 63-82). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Burland, K. & Magee, W.L. (2014). Music technology in therapy and its relevance to Identity. In W. L. Magee (Ed.). Music Technology in Therapeutic and Health Settings, (pp. 327-348). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Magee, W.L. (2013). Music therapy methods for people with long-term neurological conditions. In J. Allen & K. Bruscia (Eds.). Guidelines for Music Therapy Practice: Adult Medical Patients, (pp. 201-236). Gilsum, NH: Barcelona Publishers.
Magee, W.L. (2002). Identity in clinical music therapy: shifting self-constructs through the therapeutic process. In R. MacDonald, D.J. Hargreaves, & D. Miell (Eds.), Musical Identities, (pp. 179-197). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Magee, W. (1999). Music Therapy in Chronic Degenerative Illness: Reflecting the Dynamic Sense of Self. In D. Aldridge (Ed.), Music Therapy in Palliative Care, (pp. 82-94). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Magee, W. (1999). “Singing my life, playing my self”. Music Therapy in the treatment of chronic neurological illness. In T. Wigram, & J. De Backer (Eds.), Clinical Applications of Music Therapy in Developmental Disability, Pediatrics and Neurology, (pp. 201 – 223). London: Jessica Kingsley Publications.
Media
2018 Interview for National Public Radio “Innovation Hub” program “Can music help improve memory?” Aired April 20, 2018
Podcast of program: Can music help improve memory?
Interview and podcast: Can music help improve memory?
2016 Music and Neuroscience: part of the Music, Health and Wellbeing Massive Open Online Course series [Audio podcast].
2014 Interview with Dr. Wendy Magee, Infobae TV with Soledad Blardone, Buenos Aires, Argentina (television). Oct 19. ‘Musicterapia: conozca el extraordinario poder sanidor de la música’.
2010 Front Row with Mark Lawson, BBC Radio 4 (radio). April. ‘Music Therapy in brain injury rehabilitation.'
Music therapy for acquired brain injury: a Cochrane Review [Audio podcast].
2009 Interview with Parkinson’s Recovery (Radio and on line) ‘Music Therapy and Parkinson’s’
Selected Invited Keynotes, Lectures, Teaching, Meetings and Conference Work 2015-2019
2019
Lead trainer: XXth International Training Institute for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). Spaulding Rehabilitation Center, Boston MA, Sept 26-28, 2019.
Invited keynote: Celebrating Diversity, Engaging with Difference. Canadian Association of Music Therapy National Conference, Gatineau-Ottawa, Canada, May 25, 2019
Lead trainer: XVIIth International Training Institute for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability, London, March 11-13, 2019.
2018
Lead trainer: XVIIIth International Training Institute for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). (3 days). China Rehabiltation Research Center, Beijing, China, July 18-20, 2018.
Lead trainer: XVth International Training Institute for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). (3 days). Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, June, 11-13, 2018.
Invited speaker: Assessment in Music Therapy: Challenges, Realities and Opportunities. 5th International Conference of the International Association for Music and Medicine, Barcelona, Spain, June 7-10, 2018.
Invited keynote: Music Therapy innovations and research XVI Brazilian National Symposium of Music Therapy, Piauí, Brazil, May 31-June 2.
Invited Round Table Participant: Music Therapy and neuro-rehabilitation; invited Workshop Leader: Music Therapy with minimally responsive populations. XVI Brazilian National Symposium of Music Therapy, Piauí, Brazil, May 31-June 2.
Invited speaker: Assessment, evaluation and measuring outcomes with minimally responsive populations (children and adults). Arts Therapies and Brain Injury: Optimising Outcomes Across Research, Assessment, Treatment and Care. CHROMA, London, UK, March 15, 2018
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Music Interventions for Acquired Brain Injuries: Findings from an Updated Cochrane Review. Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability, London, March 8, 2018.
Lead trainer: XIVth International Training Institute for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC). Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability, London, March 8-10, 2018.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Music therapy in brain injury rehabilitation: mechanisms and behavioral outcomes. Moss Rehabilitation Topics in Rehabilitation Science, Philadelphia, January 17, 2018.
2017
Invited speaker and panelist: Music and the Mind. John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, DC, and National Institutes of Health, Washington D.C., June 2 – 3, 2017.
Invited speaker: Music interventions for acquired brain injury: evidence for music therapy within interdisciplinary contexts. Mozart & Science Congress, IMC University of Applied Sciences, Krems, Austria, Nov 10-11, 2017.
Invited speaker and panelist: Spotlight on Music Therapy at “Creative Forces Clinical Research Summit”, National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Depts. of Defense and of Veterans Affairs, Sept. 18-19, National Academies for Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, D.C.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Music Therapy for Acquired Brain Injury: Presenting the Evidence. Chiba Ryogo Center for Disorders of Consciousness, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. July 18, 2017
Invited workshop leaderEvidenced Based Methods in Music Therapy for Neurological Populations. China Rehabilitation Research Center, Beijing, China, July 1, 2017.
Invited workshop leader Practical skills in music therapy assessment with minimally responsive populations. China Rehabilitation Research Center, Beijing, China, July 1, 2017.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): An Introduction to the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): a music-based measure to contribute to interdisciplinary assessment of awareness. China Rehabilitation Research Center, Beijing, China, June 30, 2017.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Music therapy with patients with disorders of consciousness. Coma Research Group, Center for Neurorehabilitation, Institute of Neuroscience, Guangzhou General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Command of People’s Liberation Army, June 29, 2017.
Invited workshop leader: Evidenced Based Methods in Music Therapy for Acquired Brain Injury. Coma Research Group, Center for Neurorehabilitation, Institute of Neuroscience, Guangzhou General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Command of People’s Liberation Army, June 28, 2017.
Invited speaker: Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): Research and Clinical Practice. Coma Research Group, Center for Neurorehabilitation, Institute of Neuroscience, Guangzhou General Hospital, June 28, 2017.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Music Therapy for Acquired Brain Injury: Presenting the Evidence. Taipei Veterans Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. June 26, 2017.
Invited speaker and panelist: Music and the Mind, Mainly Mozart Festival. Talk: Therapeutic applications of music technologies in health and education settings across the life span. Panel topic: Bridging the Disability Gap with Music Technology. San Diego, June 9-11, 2017.
Invited Keynote: Music: a mega-vitamin for the brain. At: “Celebrating Music Therapy in Ireland”, Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland, March 14, 2017.
Invited speaker (Grand Round): Evidenced Based Practice and Research in Music Therapy and Acquired Brain Injury, National Rehabilitation Hospital, Dublin, Ireland, March 13, 2017.
2016
Invited keynote: “Neuroscience and music: Translating evidence into meaningful practice.” 10th European Music Therapy Conference: A Symphony of Dialogues, European Music Therapy Confederation, July 05-09, Vienna, Austria
Invited speaker: Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): a standardized diagnostic music-based measure for minimally responsive populations (Oral presentation).Where Music and Medicine Meet: 4th International Conference of the International Association of Music and Medicine, June 11-13, Beijing, China
Invited speaker: Introduction to MATADOC: Practical Skills in Music Therapy Assessment with People with Disorders of Consciousness (Workshop). Where Music and Medicine Meet: 4th International Conference of the International Association of Music and Medicine, June 11-13, Beijing, China
2015
Invited speaker: “Music Interventions for Acquired Brain Injury”Conference “Examining the utility of music interventions in neurological disorders of older people," Live Music Now and the Royal Society of Medicine, Nov 16, Royal Society of Medicine, London, UK.
Lead trainer: International Training for the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness: Royal Childrens Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, May 21-23, 2015.
Invited Public Lecture (sole speaker): Using music as an intervention in pediatric and adult populations with disorders of consciousness. Royal Childrens Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, May 20, 2015.