Hello friends and happy September!

My name is Shelby and I am thrilled to announce that I am the newest Toneworks music therapy intern! It is a huge privilege and honor to have the opportunity of learning and growing within this incredible practice, and I am greatly looking forward to these next six months.

I grew up in Mound, Minnesota, and recently graduated from the University of Minnesota with a bachelor of arts in theatre arts and a bachelor of music in music therapy. Throughout my educational career I loved performing in theatre shows and musical ensembles, and it was during a performance at an Alzheimer’s and Dementia care facility that I learned about the profession of music therapy. After watching the residents joyfully participate in a music therapy session, miraculously remembering the lyrics to all of the performed songs, I was instantly hooked and knew this was the perfect profession for me. Although my initial introduction to music therapy was with older populations, I quickly learned that I loved working with kids and that my theatre background allowed me to support their intuitively creative, explorative, and playful nature. I gravitated toward Toneworks because of their commitment to supporting service users of all ages and populations in a collaborative, inclusive, and musical environment. I am extremely grateful to get to work with the amazing team here!

In my free time, I enjoy camping, hiking, swimming, rollerblading, and being active outside when the weather allows. I also enjoy listening to music of all genres, with some of my favorites being acoustic, alternative, pop, folk, soul, and jazz. The first concert I ever went to was the Jonas Brothers and my most recent concerts include Twenty One Pilots and Bruno Mars. If I could travel anywhere in the world right now, I would go to Italy (and eat LOADS of pasta). I am also a huge animal lover and have a Great Dane named Sedrick (who weighs 110 pounds!).

During my internship, I am most looking forward to making music with the awesome service users at Toneworks, discovering lots of new songs and artists, and learning about the processes of running a private practice. I hope to contribute my creativity, positivity, and enthusiasm for learning to the Toneworks community and am greatly looking forward to sharing those with all of you!