Let go of trauma by using harmony to tune into healing – Winnipeg Free Press

Darcy knows a thing or two about giving and receiving.

The Winnipeg founder and CEO of Make Music Matter, which recently won awards for its work in war-torn countries in Africa as well as the Middle East and Ukraine, says those are the gifts he's received from survivors of conflict and trauma. keeps the most precious.

“It's a combination of gratitude and anger, in a sense you do this job and the only reason you can do it effectively is to send vulnerable people home on their worst days,” Ataman says. 14,000 people worldwide who have joined Make Music Matter's Healing in Harmony music therapy program.

“Everyone who goes through the program has been through unimaginable trauma and the fact that they're vulnerable in front of you so you can go on a journey of healing together is just a gift.”

World Vision Canada, a global relief and development agency, has been working with Make Music Matter in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo for the past three years. She presented Ataman with the Ruth Roberts Award, which honors people who have helped improve the lives of children and youth, on January 27 for developing the Healing in Harmony program.

Make Music Matter sets up recording studios, sometimes mobile studios in a van that travel to remote villages, and invite women and children who have experienced sexual violence to write and record songs about their lives.

Songs are played on community radio stations, uploaded to streaming services, and become the centerpiece of concerts and local festivals, where stigma and shame are dispelled, revealing proud artists.

“Talking about it directly can actually re-stress, reset and make it worse,” says Ataman. “It's been scientifically proven that using metaphor in writing lyrics can take trauma off the surface, making it less scary.”

Started in Rwanda in 2009, Make Music Matter has been partnering with Patsi Hospital, a Congolese facility in Bukavu, since 2015. It treats patients' physical and emotional wounds and is led by gynecologist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege. .

According to Ataman, the world's search for rare metals and minerals has turned eastern Congo into a war zone.

“Sexual violence, primarily rape, which we help treat through our program, is still widely used as a weapon of war in the mining sector,” she says. “All the minerals in our mobile phones, flat-screen TVs and laptops are pressure-mined near Panzi Hospital in eastern Congo.”

Part of Make Music Matter's work in Ukraine is on display at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights. Ukrainian artists are unitedit includes films by 11 artists from Lviv, Ukraine.

Ataman and the organization began introducing their methods to Canadian Indigenous communities a year ago, partnering with Kehewin Indigenous Dance Theater from Northeastern Alberta to help address the effects of intergenerational trauma among youth, often in the residential school system.

He admits the process has been slow.

“It was very interesting to learn that the distance between our cultures is much wider than I thought,” says Ataman. “The trust that needed to be built and the changes made to integrate (local) culture into the model were small but very helpful.”

The early results spawned an artist collective called Nikamo, which means “singing” in Cree; As in Africa, the band compiled their recordings into an EP called EP moments, released last October.

As wars rage around the world and trauma continues among people in Canada, a member of the Order of Manitoba sees some light amidst the darkness.

“As a society, we're talking more about mental health, not as an add-on, but as an essential part of life,” Ataman says. “So I'm glad the need is growing because it shows a more sophisticated approach to these issues.”

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Alan Jr
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Alan Small has been a journalist with the Free Press for over 22 years in various roles, most recently as a reporter for Arts and Life.

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