Abstract

Minoritized music therapists are increasingly represented in music therapy research, but the literature base that includes the experience and expertise of racialized music therapists who also identify as Queer remains small. The purpose of this heuristic self-inquiry was to examine how the researcher’s intersecting Queer and Asian identities and their experiences growing up in western culture inform their early career music therapist identity. Moustakas’ (1990) six phases of heuristic self-inquiry were used to generate and analyze data and to support the final creative synthesis. Qualitative data was generated through journaling and songwriting (with a specific focus on lyric writing) after daily music improvisation sessions that took place over a four week period. Thematic analysis of the data generated three thematic categories with three to four sub-themes each. Categories include: Feelings Associated with Self & Identity Exploration, Challenging Life Experiences, and Generating Momentum. A visual art piece was created to summarize and synthesize the researcher’s experience of the enquiry process. Personal and professional implications were explicated and include a focus on the importance of critical self-reflection, understanding how experiences of marginalization inform our music therapy work, and increasing the representation of minoritized voices in research, education, and practice settings.