Breathing war, dreaming connection: Dialogue as an ethical foundation for collaborative work of Palestinian and Jewish music therapists in Israel

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56883/aijmt.2025.615

Keywords:

music therapy, war-zone, ethics, culture-sensitive dialogue

Abstract

A collective of six Palestinian-Arab and Jewish music therapists, researchers and educators, and citizens of Israel convened to explore and foster the specific needs of Arab music therapists in Israel. As a primary ethical step, we embarked on a participatory study, delving into our personal and professional experiences as music therapists in a country deeply affected by long-term trauma and conflict. All group members participated in a 90-minute focus group designed as a semi-structured interview, with one member acting as an interviewer and another as a translator. The interview was recorded and transcribed. It was analysed by three group members, Jewish and Arab, to afford triangulation. Following three successive rounds of thematic analysis, a 90-minute Zoom consultation solidified the emergence of five key themes: (1) blurred boundaries challenge ethical thinking; (2) shaped by war; (3) fragmented identities; (4) cultural loneliness; and (5) music in therapy – between polarisation and shared identity. Several themes also had subthemes. The findings were shared with all group members, who provided additional input. The discussion highlights the profound implications of cultural division and hierarchy on all group members, the lack of authentic and culture-based professional growth, and a gap in culturally-sensitive professional ethics for Palestinian-Arab participants. We grappled with the ethical challenge of holding multiple truths as Israeli music therapists, while embracing the hopeful notion that music can serve as a unifying medium, bridge cultural divides, and foster a pluralistic approach to music therapy.  

Author Biographies

  • Efrat Roginsky, University of Haifa, Israel Tel-Hai College, Israel

    Efrat Roginsky, PhD, is a music therapist and clinical supervisor. She serves as a research fellow and lecturer in the MA Music Therapy Program at the University of Haifa, and as a research fellow at Tel-Hai College. Dr Roginsky is also the national head supervisor for Creative Arts Therapies in the Israeli Ministry of Education. Her current professional and academic work focuses on disability rights, social dialogue, and the role of creative arts therapies in promoting social inclusion and systemic change.[roginskyefrat@gmail.com]

  • Tamar Hadar, University of Haifa, Israel

    Tamar Hadar, PhD, The School of Creative Arts Therapies, University of Haifa, co-head of the music therapy program. A music therapist, supervisor and lecturer, working with children and families in an early intervention unit and in a private practice. Hadar specialises in child–parent interventions, specifically in the context of trauma and displacement. Hadar’s research centres on clinical improvisation theory and assessment; music therapy for infants and preterm babies; and culturally sensitive music therapy. [thadar1@univ.haifa.ac.il]

  • Nihal Midhat-Najami, Independent scholar, Israel

    Nihal Midhat-Najami, PhD, is a music therapist, supervisor, independent researcher, and head of the expressive arts therapy team at the Ministry of Education. She is a member of Mistory, an international consortium focused on trauma recovery across cultures. Najami works with children and families in trauma-affected communities, specialising in intimate partner violence recovery within traditional and collectivist societies, with a focus on embodied trauma and the impact of political violence. Her work emphasises healing, resilience, and culturally rooted recovery trajectories through expressive and arts-based approaches.  [nihalmidhat1@gmail.com]

  • Buran Saada, Independent Scholar, Occupied Palestinian Territories

    Buran Saada M.A.A.T, is a music therapist, supervisor, lecturer, and trainer in music and art therapy. She resides in Shaab village, near Akko in the Galilee. With an academic background in education and music sciences, her professional path has spanned schools, cultural institutions, and heritage concerts. She holds a master’s degree in music therapy and is deeply engaged in therapeutic work and training across the Arab Palestinian community in Jerusalem, 1948-occupied Palestine, and the West Bank. Her work includes training professionals in psychology, sociology, and social work, alongside direct therapeutic practice with diverse populations. [burans.saada@gmail.com]

  • Rozan Khoury, Ministry of Education, Israel

    Rozan Khoury is a music therapist, singer and music education trainer specialising in early childhood. Her musical journey began at an early age with classical training in both cello and singing. In 2006, she secured second place in a classical Arabic singing competition at the Casablanca Festival in Morocco. A year earlier, in 2005, she won first place at the Arabic Singing Festival in Israel. In 2005, Rozan joined the Sabreen Association in Jerusalem, where she contributed to the development of music education curriculums for schools in the West Bank and UNRWA elementary schools. Currently, she is part of a team at Beit al-Musica in Shafa’amr, developing innovative musical materials for young Arabic-speaking children. [rozankhoury@gmail.com]

  • Maimounah Hebi, University of Haifa, Israel

    Maimounah Hebi, PhD, is an art therapist, researcher, and lecturer whose work focuses on emotional processing, wellbeing among minorities, and resilience in times of adversity. She teaches in the School of Creative Arts Therapies at the University of Haifa, and currently a post-doctoral fellow in the neuropsychology research group at Eötvös Loránd University. [maimouna.hebi@gmail.com]

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Published

2025-06-18

Issue

Vol. 17 No. 1 (2025): Special issue: "Ethical questions in transforming music practices"

Section

Articles

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Copyright (c) 2025 Efrat Roginsky, Tamar Hadar, Nihal Midhat-Najami, Buran Saada, Rozan Khoury, Maimounah Hebi

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.