Music is such an integral and defining part of who we are. The music we grow up with and the music we choose to listen to as we get older shapes our preferences, our memories, and identity, among other things. As music therapists, it is imperative to nourish the relationship with our clients, by building rapport, by continuing to getting to know them and by honoring the different makers of who they are. Honoring who they are includes appreciating their stories, learning about them, their culture, their language and bringing music to your sessions that is important to them.

As a Latina and bilingual music therapist, from time to time I get asked about what songs or music in Spanish we should bring to our music therapy sessions with Latino clients. If you are reading this blog post because you are currently working with a Latino client and would like to know a list of Spanish songs to learn for your next session, let me first ask you this:

Have you asked your clients what music they like? (And, do you know if they even prefer music in Spanish?
Do you know about your client, their story, culture, and background?
What do their story, culture and background might say about the music they like?
Do you know what they consider their homeland to be? (i.e. do they consider their home to be where they were born or where they moved to years later?)
If they moved to the USA (assuming you are a music therapist working in the USA), when did that happen? Was it when they were children, as young adults, later in life?
If they identify as Latin American, what Latin American country do they consider their home? (Although we share cultural markers, every Latin American country is different)

These are some of the questions that I might include in my “assessment”, or while getting to know my client. We should avoid seeing a Latinx individual and consider them a part of an ethnic monolith. The truth is that the Latino community is comprised of several groups, cultures, countries, traditions. No Latino group is like the other, and although similarities connect us, we all have our own unique history, geography, regionalisms and differences in our language, different economic systems, traditions, celebrations, beliefs and character.

When we receive a referral for a Latinx client, instead of asking “What songs in Spanish should I sing when I meet this person?, we should ask ourselves instead “How can I make sure I learn the intricacies of who this person is? If they identify as Latinx, how can get to know more about their identity, about their culture, about their language, and about all other pieces that make them who they are?”

I think it’s very normal for us to be concerned about our repertoire and making sure that the music we bring to our clients is the one that they connect with. But beyond the music, I rather find ourselves connecting with our clients first, learning about who they are, and not just see them as one more person we need to play a couple of songs to. As we proceed with curiosity when holding space for this person, we can then gain insight about what type of music or specific songs we can bring to this shared space that will compliment their preferences and celebrate their story.

In summary:

Avoid assumptions and follow with curiosity.

Now that I’ve prefaced with some thoughts about working with Latinx clients and after I’ve hopefully inspired you to follow their lead with curiosity, I’d like to share with you some of my favorite songs in Spanish that I’ve provided when working with older adults. These songs are popular and known by this age group in different countries of Latin America and they are also intergenerational; they are songs that are known by younger generations due to the release of newer versions over the years by contemporary artists. Although most of the Latino clients I’ve worked with have been mainly from the Caribbean and northern South American countries, I’ve found myself sharing these songs with clients from several other Latin American countries.