Reviewing the Past, Celebrating the Present, and Envisioning the Future

The University of Pretoria’s Master’s programme in Music Therapy convened a hybrid symposium to celebrate 25 years of accredited training. Based on audio-visual recordings of the event that were transcribed for the present manuscript, this report provides an account of the day’s contributions, organised around three interlinked themes: looking back on programme development, reflecting on clinical practice, and celebrating research trajectories while envisioning future collaborations. Speakers revisited the programme’s origins in the late 1990s, its navigation of Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) accreditation, and the influence of key pioneers. Accounts of practice highlighted diverse South African contexts, from private mental health care and paediatric palliative care to community-based work in under-resourced schools and public-sector psychiatric services, alongside the ongoing need for advocacy, funded internships, and dedicated posts. Research reflections mapped a growing body of South African scholarship and international contributions. The symposium also foregrounded transnational dialogue: a formal collaboration with Queen Margaret University, and perspectives from India, Brazil, Ghana, and Zambia on developing culturally grounded, accessible, and socially responsive training. The report concludes that sustaining the profession’s next 25 years will require intensified public-sector investment and continued advocacy for mental health, interdisciplinary partnership across arts therapies, and reciprocal learning across the African continent and the global field.