Meet Gabriel,

Hi everyone,

My name is Zhengyao GUO (Gabriel). I’m a Registered Music Therapist accredited with the Australian Music Therapy Association. I completed my Master of Music Therapy from the University of Melbourne in 2020. I’m also a Chinese Music Therapist recognised by the Chinese Professional Music Therapy Association since 2018. I speak Mandarin and English. My pronouns are: He/ Him/ His.

I’m based in Melbourne and have a great passion for working with culturally and linguistically diverse populations (CALD). I believe music serves as a bridge that transcends languages, time, locations, and cultural boundaries and brings people together to celebrate human diversity.

To ensure culturally safe practice, I acknowledge that I have my own cultural beliefs as an ordinary human being, but I’ll continue to develop self-awareness and critically reflect on my pre-assumptions. I’ll continue to examine my motivation to listen, respect, validate, and embrace others’ beliefs, values, attitudes, lived experiences, and the way they express their health and wellbeing.

  • Qualification

    Registered Music Therapist (Australia)

    Registered Music Therapist (China)

    Neurologic Music therapist (U.S.)

    Professional Presentations:

    Guo, Z. (2021). Invisible behind the scene’: unheard voice from an international students experiencing mental distress during a COVID-19 lockdown. Pechakucha presented at the 47th National Conference of the Australian Music Therapy Association, Melbourne, Australia. (Denise Grocke Student/New Grad Award)

    Wen, Y., Lv, Z., & Guo, Z. (2018). Interactive music therapy as a non-pharmacological sedative for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia receiving PICC. Paper presented at the 5th international conference of the international association for music and medicine, Barcelona, Spain.

 

Why Am I Here？

I started my acculturation journey when I came to Australia a few years ago. It brings me plenty of happiness and tears. Sometimes I was overwhelmed like a scaredy-cat just fleeing away, but there’s nothing to stop me from being a unique cultural being who’s continuing to be fluid like a running river.

I’m grateful that my unique positioning and my ‘superpower’ music make me a culturally informed music therapist, and I care about everyone’s cultural wellbeing. In this acculturation journey, there’s no such a thing as a destination, and there’s no such a thing as a ‘good cultural fit’. It’s all about being a well-balanced cultural being, rejecting cultural standard, and challenging racist power.

Essencial Principles

Cultural Responsiveness

To increase awareness of our own cultures and others’ cultures with openness. It’s a life-long process of being self-reflective and respectful of everyone’s unique way of living.

 

Multicultural Connection

Perhaps we are from different cultural backgrounds, but this won’t stop us from staying connected as we all have shared universal similarities in humans.

 
 

Cultural fluidity

To be in music, you are expanding your consciousness towards a fluid cultural being.

 
 
 

Advocacy

To advocate for an equal and culturally responsive social system for all people from diverse cultural backgrounds.