‘Signifying’ Trauma through Songwriting
Over the last 4 years, I have been leading songwriting for different vulnerable communities in the Boston area. This project explores the results of working with songwriting and lyric writing as a form of therapeutic transformation and resignification of trauma. Included are examples and documentation from my own teaching experience, and interviews with fellow teaching artists who also work with song as a vessel for expression and healing. Specific activities developed from and in these workshops are also presented.
At 18 years old Delfina Cheb was awarded a scholarship to pursue a double degree in Jazz Composition and Voice performance at Berklee College of music. There she explored jazz and folkloric music from different regions, including South America, North America, and the Balkans. After that, she earned her master’s degree in Contemporary Musical Arts at the New England Conservatory. She is currently a doctoral student at the New England Conservatory, continuing her research on Tango and South American music.
As an educator, Delfina has led songwriting workshops for different communities in the Boston area including programs at the ICU COVID unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital, at the LGBTQ+ elder community of Boston, and at assisted living facilities for seniors.
As a performer, she has recorded two Tango albums in Argentina with renowned Spanish producer Javier Limon which she presented in Europe and Argentina over the last 4 years.
