Gabriela Asch-Ortiz, PhD Candidate, LCAT, MT-BC

Gabriela S. Asch-Ortiz, MS, LCAT, MT-BC (she, her, ella), is a Latina Board-Certified Music Therapist and New York State Licensed Creative Arts Therapist in New York City. Gabriela is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Music Therapy at Temple University. Her clinical background and personal journey have influenced her cultural-relational perspective on music therapy practice and pedagogy. Rooted in her lived experiences, Gabriela is firmly committed to promoting advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility within music therapy and healthcare. Her advocacy involves dismantling oppressive structures to foster a more inclusive healthcare environment for stakeholders. 

Beyond her clinical contributions, Gabriela has co-authored peer-reviewed articles on music therapy in healthcare settings, including a chapter in Portraits of Everyday Practice. She also serves on the editorial board for Music Therapy Perspectives. Gabriela's doctoral research focuses on broadening understandings of therapeutic relationships experienced by Latine individuals and their music therapists in healthcare contexts. She employs autoethnography, weaving her personal experience with the study's cultural, social, and political dimensions to provide a comprehensive understanding of these dynamics. Gabriela also presents widely on topics encompassing relational music therapy, ecological perspectives, cultural reflexivity, and anti-oppressive practices.