6. ‘It was her song’: connecting with others Music
therapy seemed to offer an important means
of connecting with others, present and absent.
Patrick highlighted the therapeutic relationship in
music therapy: ‘Pressure off the old head, like… I
listen to music on my iPod but if someone’s there
singing to you... there’s someone else there... it’s a
lot different.’
Tom, who had nausea and fatigue, chose the
song ‘Fields of Gold’. Tom’s wife, Jo, at his bedside,
became tearful as it was sung; later she explained
that this song had been a favourite of her sister
who had died of cancer several years previously.
Tom thought that this remembrance, while poignant,
had been positive: ‘It was her song… and, you know,
a little bit sad, but... it was good.’
One of John’s songs, a light-hearted, affectionate
piece, was dedicated to his brother who had
donated stem cells for his transplant: ‘One of the
songs is kind of around my brother... provider of
new cells.’