Frederick Tims

ABOUT

Frederick (“Ted”) Tims received a B.M. in piano performance from Hendrix College, a B.M. in music therapy from Michigan State University, an M.A. in music literature and performance from the University of Iowa, and a Ph.D. with high honors in music education with an emphasis in music therapy from the University of Kansas. Professor Tims joined MSU in 1995 after teaching at the University of Kansas, Colorado State University (where he began a new music therapy department), and the University of Miami. For six years he was associate director of graduate studies in what is now the College of Music. He retired as Professor and Chair of the Music Therapy area in 2012. As a board-certified music therapist, Professor Tims’ clinical work includes hospitals in Germany and the United States as well as in private practice. His research focused on the effects of music making on healthy older Americans and the effects of music therapy on the biology and behavior of Alzheimer’s patients. Professor Tims is past president of the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) and a past secretary of the Certification Board for Music Therapists. In 2001, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from AMTA. In 2009, he keynoted AMTA’s Great Lakes Conference where he was honored with the Scholarly Activity Award for significant contributions to the knowledge base of the profession.