JB Music Therapy

We often focus on what we see...let's tune in to what we hear. A thoughtful share from Music Heals Canada

We are just so grateful to be a part of this initiative - and none of it would be possible without so many incredible partners, champions and donors.

The healing power of music is about to reach even more Canadians who need it. 🎵💙

National Music Centre (NMC) is thrilled to announce a transformative $500,000 multi-year commitment from BMO to expand NMC’s Music Therapy Initiative, bringing music therapy to more patients, families, and communities across Canada.

The initiative is delivered in hospitals and care settings through a partnership with JB Music Therapy. Already making an impact in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and British Columbia, BMO’s support will help make NMC’s Music Therapy Initiative a truly national program.

Thanks to a partnership with The Jim Pattison Foundation, BMO’s contribution will be matched dollar-for-dollar, significantly amplifying the initiative’s reach and impact.

Want to help us bring the healing power of music to more people? Learn more or donate at studiobell.ca/nmc-music-therapy-initiative.

Pictured: The BMO Financial Group team and NMC’s President & CEO Andrew Mosker bringing a little Calgary Stampede spirit to a milestone announcement.

Photo credit: Unfolding Creative Photography

🎉 A little milestone we'd love to share with you.

After 35 years of music therapy practice, countless conversations, research projects, and a lot of hard work behind the scenes, we're preparing to launch Wellplayed this September as part of JB Music Therapy's 35th anniversary year.

Wellplayed is a music therapy-informed digital platform designed to help people use music more intentionally for reflection, resilience, and wellbeing.

Today we're opening our first 1,000 Founding Subscriber spots.

Many of you have been following, encouraging, testing, and cheering us on throughout this journey. Thank you. We truly wouldn't be here without you.

If you'd like to be part of this next chapter, Founding Subscribers can pre-order today for $29.95/year (regularly $49.95/year) using the promo code WELLPLAYEDFOUNDER.

https://buy.stripe.com/fZu28r1C39bx4ke28dgrS01

🎧 We'd love to have you join us.

We are so fortunate to work with the future...our children. As we head into the latter half of June, here's a good reminder from one of the schools we serve: be the "I" in "KIND!"

Music therapy offers students an excellent opportunity to put their interpersonal skills into practice. Playing music in a group requires collaboration, turn-taking, problem-solving, and listening to one another. When all of these things come together, we find cooperation and connection - skills that serve us well both inside and beyond the classroom.

In the photo: Aaron and Emma 🎶❤️

In a world that often rewards speed, filling space, and having the answer, therapy can feel surprisingly different.

Sometimes the most important thing we offer is a pause.

Perhaps this is something music has been teaching us all along.

Music is not made of sound alone. It is made of sound and silence, movement and pause. The spaces between the notes shape meaning, create anticipation, allow for expression, and give music its flow.

Without the pause, music becomes a wall of sound instead of something that breathes.

The same can be true in therapy.

A pause allows time for processing.
A pause creates space for emotion.
A pause invites choice, initiative, and self-expression.
A pause can be the moment when a person discovers their own voice rather than responding to ours.

In music therapy, silence is not the absence of therapy.

The pause is part of the therapy.

We are honoured to be nominated for a 2026 Calgary Award 🇨🇦

In 1994, the Calgary Awards were established to recognize the outstanding contributions Calgarians make to the life and future of our city. To be nominated among so many thoughtful, innovative, and community-minded organizations is deeply meaningful to us.

Congratulations to the other nominees, including Innerlogue Therapy & Psychology, Microserve, Resilient Hearts, Sandstone Asset Management, The Arrowhead Live Music & Events Center and Hitman’s Bar, and XhAle Brew Co. It is encouraging to stand alongside organizations helping shape Calgary’s future through innovation, care, creativity, leadership, and community.

The 2026 Calgary Awards recipients will be announced online on June 17, 2026.

Thank you, Calgary, for supporting our work for more than three decades.

After a serious accident or trauma, people don’t simply “return to normal.”

Instead, they adapt to a new normal—one that can shift from day to day, or even moment to moment. Recovery becomes a process of continuous learning, where adaptability isn’t just helpful—it’s essential.

In the midst of that uncertainty, the right supports can make a meaningful difference. Music therapy offers both stability and flexibility, providing grounding when life feels unpredictable while creating space to process emotions, build resilience, and support change.

This story shares how one individual used music therapy to navigate recovery following a spinal cord injury:

A Story of Resilience: Mark’s Journey with Music Therapy:
https://zurl.co/qzJKB

Music Therapy in ICU: A Journey of Recovery, Resilience, and Psychosocial Support - JB Music Therapy Discover how JB Music Therapy supports ICU patients and families in Calgary with psychosocial support through music therapy, offering comfort, resilience, and evidence-based benefits in critical care settings.

Just as spring invites fresh starts, our brains and bodies thrive on newness too. Exploring new music—whether it’s a different genre, instrument, or even a new playlist—can boost mood, spark curiosity, and support overall wellbeing. “The brain changes in response to experience—new learning literally helps it rewire.” — Neuroplasticity research

This season, try something new:
🎶 Listen outside your usual favourites
🎶 Learn an instrument or even a new song
🎶 Let music surprise you

Growth doesn’t have to be big to be meaningful. Sometimes, it starts with pressing play on something new.