Allegra Themmen-Pigott

Life in the Key of Allegra Allegra Themmen-Pigott

This is an extraordinary memoir that takes the reader inside the author's vivid and unusual memories, spanning decades of growth from early childhood to middle age motherhood and on into a career in the field of Music Therapy. Allegra Themmen-Pigott speaks in several distinct and authentic voices. First is that of a five-year old girl beginning the search for self in her world, which includes parents dedicated to the arts, a twin sister to love and compete with, an older brother and sister, and growing up in New York City. Immersed in the musical world of her parents she is soon singing professionally in a traveling Broadway musical. Blessed with a beautiful voice, professional instruction and operatic singing soon follow. We hear pre-teen and then teenage voices brimming with colorful imagination, insecurities and adventure. As she gains stage assurance through the power and success of her opera singing, Themmen-Pigott gains insights into the therapeutic role music can play in treating mental disorders. This is reinforced by her mother's Alzheimer's disease. Combing this knowledge with her formal education in Music Therapy enables her to use music to help patients when other therapies are unsuccessful. With this book, Themmen-Pigott is striving to inspire all therapists to include the healing powers of music in their practice.