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Revista Brasileira de Musicoterapia ISSN 2316-994x Brazilian Journal of Music Therapy ISSN 2764-5541

Report of reflective professional experience in music therapy

ANO XXVII - NÚMERO 41 - 2025

Music Therapy in the Context of a Natural Disaster: A Case Report from the Rio Grande do Sul Floods

DOI
https://doi.org/10.51914/brjmt.41.2025.482
Submitted
December 10, 2025
Published
16-06-2026

Abstract

The floods that occurred in Rio Grande do Sul in 2024 constituted a large-scale humanitarian crisis, affecting thousands of families and generating physical, emotional, social, and spiritual impacts. In this context, the Associação de Musicoterapia do Rio Grande do Sul (AMT-RS) developed a project offering free music therapy services, both in-person in shelters and online, primarily targeting vulnerable populations, including families with special needs. This article aims to report and analyze this music therapy intervention experience in a disaster context. This is a qualitative, descriptive study grounded in the neuroscience of trauma, Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT), and Community Music Therapy (CoMT). The interventions included music listening, therapeutic singing, instrumental improvisation, and group-based practices, conducted both in shelters and remotely. The findings indicate that music facilitated emotional regulation, symbolic expression of grief, strengthening of social bonds, and the re-signification of traumatic experiences. Spirituality emerged through familiar repertoires, affective memories, and collective musical practices. The results suggest that music therapy can serve as a relevant psychosocial care strategy in disaster contexts, contributing to the promotion of resilience, a sense of belonging, and the reconstruction of meaning.

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