Current students

Ms Rachel Darnley-Smith, MA (Essex), LGSM(MT), BA (Lancaster)

Contact Ms Rachel Darnley-Smith (email at r.m.r.darnley-smith@durham.ac.uk)

Biography

Rachel Darnley-Smith studied music and philosophy at Lancaster University, and trained as a music therapist at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986. She completed a Masters in Philosophy and Psychoanalysis at the University of Essex in 2004, where she wrote her dissertation on Schopenhauer and Music.

Rachel Darnley-Smith is registered with the Health Professions Council and has worked as a music therapist for over 20 years in NHS settings, social services and the Inner London Probation Service. The focus of her clinical work has been with adults and older adults in mental health services, and this formed the basis for a number of publications including the introductory book, ‘Music Therapy’ (2003, Sage Publications) which she wrote with Helen Patey and has recently been translated into Danish and Japanese.

Rachel Darnley-Smith was for many years a tutor and leader of the experiential music therapy group on the music therapy training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She was chair of the Association of Professional Music Therapists 1990-92. She has regularly contributed paper presentations across a range of disciplines to clinical and research conferences in the UK, Europe, USA, Canada and Australia. She is a member of the Older Adults special interest section of the Association for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy in the NHS and has a private clinical supervision practice in London and Durham.

She is a lecturer and co-convenor of the MA in Music Therapy at Roehampton University (http://www.roehampton.ac.uk/staff/RachelDarnley-Smith) and also teaches the third-year BA module ‘Introduction to Music Therapy’ at Durham. She is currently working in Durham on a doctoral study ‘The Aesthetics of Free Improvisation in Music Therapy’ under the supervision of Professor Max Paddison. Since January 2008 her studies have been funded by an AHRC postgraduate award.

Research Interests

• Music Therapy