嘻哈 & 竖琴
当克莉丝汀·加拉格尔13,15m.A. ran into rap 音乐ian Kuf Knotz at a Whole Foods in Wynwood, Pennsylvania her entire life changed. It was only a few months prior that Gallagher first heard Knotz perform with his former band at a fundraiser for a non-profit called Beyond the Bars, 她在哪里担任董事.
“我觉得他的音乐太棒了，我心想, 如果我想成为一个表演者, 我也想做那样的工作.’” 然而, at the time, Gallagher was working full-time as a 音乐 therapist. 两个月后, she had her fateful encounter with Knotz and decided to approach him and announce that if he ever needed a harpist she would be interested.
“他就像个竖琴师?加拉格尔深情地回忆道. 然而，诺茨给她寄了一些他的歌曲. 2017年11月, he contacted her and asked if she could play the Underground Arts (a local Philadelphia 音乐 venue) that evening—the sound check was in two hours. 在她事业的那个阶段, she had never performed in front of an audience that was likely to assemble at the Underground.
“虽然, 我知道如果我当时不答应, 那是我唯一的机会,她说.
She admits that she had to improvise throughout the entire show, relying on the 音乐疗法 skills she gained at Immaculata: listening, matching, leaving space and being present. She describes how she made it through that first performance with so much adrenaline that it literally drowned out any nervousness that she may have felt. 她把走进学校的所有经历都融进了脑海, group homes and other unfamiliar locations as a 音乐 therapist to ground herself. 一点鼓励的话——“你能行的”——也无伤大雅. 观众喜欢这组布景的并置.
Gallagher and Knotz played a few more gigs before he asked Gallagher if she could sing as well. Soon thereafter, she began playing the harp and singing and they ‘took it on the road’ as a duo.
多年后，这对组合越来越强大. In 2018 Kuf Knotz and Christine Elise (Gallagher’s performing name) released their first album, 只在演出时出售，以帮助支付巡演费用. 他们目前的专辑《必威网页登录》(Community)于2021年发行, 可以在所有平台上使用(包括Spotify, 苹果的音乐, 潮汐, Bandcamp和亚马逊音乐) . 他们的广播团队获得了大学和aaa级广播电台的播放, 这让他们接触到更多的观众.
The realization that they bring out the best in one another provides both 音乐ians a glimpse from a difference artistic lens. Knotz’s 音乐al style has always been geared toward hip-hop and the spoken word, 关注积极的信息和激励主题. 加拉格尔将古典音乐融入其中.
Gallagher说道:“评论非常棒. She explains that their publicity poster piques people’s attention: hip-hop and a harpist? “这将会是什么样子?” The feedback they’ve received from the audience is appreciation and gratitude. 经常, 他们被告知，他们的表演是一种治疗体验, 哪一个, 据加拉格尔说, 这可不是你在酒吧里会听到的典型反应!” She recognizes that their 音乐 can have a calming effect on listeners while containing edgy hip-hop lyrics that people can relate to. 尽管他们的歌曲触及时事, Gallagher says that there is always this underlying message of moving forward.
With a conviction to support 社区 音乐疗法 and the encouragement of their fans, Gallagher and Knotz have incorporated 音乐疗法 workshops into their touring schedule. 作为持牌专业顾问(LPC), 加拉格尔创立了社区外展表演项目, 高地音乐. She explains that the organization is a 社区 音乐疗法 private practice on the road.
自2018年以来，加拉格尔一直在Immaculata教授研究生音乐治疗课程. Teaching a couple weekends a semester allows her and Knotz to tour around her schedule. 不管他们去哪个城市, 加拉格尔找到了一个可以举办音乐治疗研讨会的地方. 他们在大学校园里做过研讨会, 学校, 库, 瑜伽组, 社区中心，然后在酒吧表演, 咖啡馆, 晚上有艺术中心和剧院. Recently they did a workshop in Indiana for children who need emotional support before playing three concerts on that road trip.
尽管诺茨一直很有社区意识, 他不熟悉社区音乐治疗的概念. 然而, 他对社区音乐家的贡献, his role in the workshops has become as important as Gallagher’s clinical therapist role.
社区音乐家的投入是社区音乐治疗的关键. So, there is a connection between the participants, 音乐ians, and the therapists. 加拉格尔意识到，有些人更喜欢诺茨，有些人更喜欢她. “It creates this extra energy that we both provide – that we wouldn’t have without the other person,她补充道. 然而, 尽管他们是自给自足的二人组, 他们乐于在音乐之旅中接受帮助和支持.
而旅游, Gallagher and Knotz encounter the most gracious and caring people that make it possible to survive on the road. One such example came when they toured Alaska in the middle of winter—the coldest and darkest time of the year for the state lying at the northwest extremity of North America.
“We built this tour in Alaska, not really knowing what we were getting into,” Gallagher admits. When their plane landed, there was an additional eight-hour trek to get to the concert location. Gallagher remembers that the people asked, “Do you have emergency snow equipment? 你有办法保护自己不受动物伤害吗? 你有多余的汽油吗?加拉格尔当时承认了这一点, 她和诺茨对在阿拉斯加演出的决定提出了质疑. 然而, the 社区 came to their rescue and provided all the necessary supplies. They were extremely grateful because Gallagher noted that they were in the middle of nowhere, 那里没有加油站，而且积雪成吨!
加拉格尔希望举办更多的研讨会，而不仅仅是在美国.S., but internationally while creating what she calls a ripple effect that the 音乐疗法 sessions bring to the 社区 and to their subsequent performances. The ultimate goal is to expand the programming for their workshops and provide resources so the 社区 can continue when the duo leaves.
巡演之外, Gallagher and Knotz sustain their 音乐al careers by broadening their 音乐疗法 program. 继续发展他们的组织, 高地音乐, they have been involved in projects such as composing songs for a video game for children with autism.
Having the opportunity to continue practicing 音乐疗法 while touring and performing is the best of both worlds for Gallagher. “当我过渡到这个阶段, I didn’t realize that I was stepping into my dream—everything that I had worked for,她说. “我没有意识到它是交给我的.”
她对任何考虑类似职业道路的人的建议是:说“是”.
