23.7. 1993 Vitoria-Gasteiz / Spain - World Federation of Music Therapy

fundamental aid in any situation of -tension, and in
particular during labour and childbirth. To this regard, it
is necessary to recall the parallelism mouth-vagina
which has been established by bio-energetics and
which allows to act directly upon the relaxation of the
perineum and the vagina by relaxing the jaw and the
muscles of the neck..
Finally, the use of voice tuned for singing and for
nursery rhymes, in the end, recalls the moments of
pleasure experienced during childood.
With regard to the use of voice the following
activities have been organized: breathing with the
uttering of sounds during the expiration phase, before
first freely and then in a structured way, according to
determinate pitches; movements of the mouth with
emission of sound and with emission of free sounds and
noises, with special attention to the listening of body
resonances (also throught putting one's hands in
various parts of the body in relation to the diff erent
688
sounds); choral singing of nursery rhymes, of lullabies
and rhymes, which the mothers remember and which
we have collected in a booklet.
2.3. We have then devoted some periods to the
information on the intrauterine sound perception and on
the development of the child in relation to sound
experience. Each meeting offered a considerable space
for dialogue and for the mothers to meet one another,
taking into account their natural and deep desire for the
communication of their discoveries, their feelings and
their experiences during this particular time of their life.
3. Verification instruments
3.1. In order to test this activity, we have set up two
questionnaires and handed them out to the couples
(one at the beginning of the course, and one a couple of
months after the birth of the baby).