Max

Max has over 10 years therapeutic experience working with with adults, adolescents, and children spanning a wide range of abilities and therapeutic needs. He specialises in working with adults with profound and multiple disabilities as well as children with a range of developmental and learning challenges. He provides group and individual sessions for a number of disability services across Melbourne's outer eastern suburbs in both day programs and at group homes. Max also visits family homes and runs sessions from his studio in Monbulk. 

Since graduating in 2014 with first class honours from The University of Melbourne’s Master of Music Therapy program, Max has had the privilege of working with music to help people experience improved quality of life. This ranges from increasing social opportunities for clients to supporting individual development in areas such as communication and mobility.


Max has previously been employed at The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne on the adolescent ward, and spent five years with Attuned Music Therapy working in the disability sector with children and adults. 
Max worked with Bop Along Baby for five years, providing early childhood music and development sessions in childcare centres and leading music groups for new parents and babies. 
Over this time, he built a thriving private practice working with adults with physical and intellectual disabilities, and in early autism support for children.

Max's extensive and ongoing experience in the arts as a performer, composer, producer, band manager and sound designer feed into his therapeutic work, to which he brings skills in the technical and technological elements of music making and a rigorous skill set in managing the logistics of serving a diverse client base.

In his role as a music therapist specialised in working with NDIS participants, Max runs The Hills Music Therapy & Creative Arts Therapy in his local area of the Dandenong Ranges and surrounds. 

As an experienced community musician and educator, Cate implemented the  vocal program at Malvern Central Primary School, and is the continuing  Co-Director of Northern Voices Choir, based in Thornbury. She developed  interactive Zoom group music sessions 'Song Club'  with the specific  goals to foster parent-child relationships and address the psychosocial  needs caused by the isolating effects of Melbourne's extended lockdown in  2020.

A graduate of the Master of Music Therapy at the University of Melbourne, Cate is experienced in early intervention, aged care and mental health settings. She has a long history of working with people across the lifespan, from infants to older adults, addressing individual needs and working with all abilities.

Within a strengths-based  and client centred framework, Cate works hard to facilitate an increase  in social opportunities for clients, using music to build the capacity  for increased communication and mobility. With both personal and  professional  experience with adult disability and early intervention, Cate strives for justice and advocacy  when working with clients and families, ensuring their preferences and  voice is heard, and their therapeutic priorities are addressed. 

With experience working with people across diverse settings including NDIS, aged

care, adolescent programs, and both paediatric and adult hospital care, Kristin brings

a person-centred and strengths-based approach to her sessions.

Drawing on the understanding of how music therapy can facilitate self-expression,

communication, and development, Kristin works collaboratively with clients and their

families to tailor her approach to promote wellbeing and development towards their

goals. Whether in individual or groups, Kristin is committed to helping clients explore

their strengths, overcome challenges, and develop meaningful connections through

the medium of something everybody loves – music!

Emma is a 2022 graduate of the Masters of Creative Arts Therapy at Melbourne Uni, with specialisation in drama therapy. In her professional experience, Emma has worked with a range of populations, including adults, the elderly and children with various needs and abilities.

Emma offers a person-centred humanistic approach to working with her clients and aims to provide them with the space they need to express themselves the way they choose. She holds choice and control at the forefront of her approach. 

Emma has previously worked in aged care, supporting residents to share their stories and memories, and has five years of experience as a disability support worker. She draws on this experience in this role in her approach to engaging with clients in the therapy space.

Additionally, Emma has worked as a children’s entertainer, and has provided nannying services to many families around Melbourne and Geelong regions. She has also delivered a theatre program to youth from disadvantaged backgrounds, and volunteered at the Royal Children’s Hospital providing children and families undergoing cancer treatment with creative and play-based activities to engage with while undergoing care. 

Luke has experience working with individuals and groups in paediatric hospitals, aged care facilities, adult disability day centres, and in-home settings. Luke takes a humanistic approach to music therapy,  believing in meeting individuals where they are at, focusing on their  strengths, offering fun and engaging sessions without expectations. 

Jim is passionate about working with groups and individuals within the disability sector where he believes in taking a collaborative, strength-based approach to music making to work towards his clients' therapeutic goals. He is particularly passionate about his work with children, facilitating fun and stimulating sessions and providing opportunities for creative and musical expression.

Jim completed his Masters of Music Therapy at The University of Melbourne in 2023, during which time he completed a placement with The Hills Music Therapy, followed by a role as a therapy assistant and now a RMT.

Mitchell Parker has first-hand experience working closely with NDIS clients and families of diverse backgrounds. Commonly his interventions are aimed at helping people improve their quality of life, communication, mood and motor functioning with diagnoses such as  Autism, Dementia, Global Developmental Delay, Stroke, Personality disorders, Parkinson's disease, Anxiety, and more. 

Mitchell is experienced working within multidisciplinary teams with Speech Pathologists, Psychologists, Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists. He prefers humanistic and strengths-based therapy, with some aspects of functional rehabilitation if needed. Mitchell has a particularly strong aptitude for early-childhood intervention and older adult work using reminiscence-based therapies. Outside of work, Mitch loves playing video games and watching sitcoms.

Catalina is deeply passionate about adopting a client-led approach, embracing a  humanistic approach in therapy, and acknowledging the significance of creating a secure environment for her clients. She prioritises cultivating a safe space, and encouraging clients to engage in creative activities, and explore the multiple benefits of the arts.

She strongly believes in the power of the therapeutic relationship to enhance social connections, build trust, and foster confidence and expression. Catalina strives to establish meaningful connections with her clients, providing them with the support they need to express themselves freely and authentically.

Catalina has provided therapy for both children and adults and has worked with clients from diverse backgrounds. She is fluent in Spanish, English, and German. 

Alice’s approach to music therapy is shaped by her commitment to person-centered, resource-oriented and humanistic principles. She believes that everyone has their own unique set of strengths they can draw upon, and music therapy provides a meaningful space to develop these. Known for her warm and open-minded nature, Alice values building trusting, therapeutic relationships, which she views as the cornerstone of effective therapy. 

Alice has experience in special education, aged care, and disability contexts. Her approach to music therapy is flexible and responsive, allowing each session to develop in a way that best supports the individual’s needs and goals.