About

Pierre Brennan, MM, MT-BC, NMT, BCBA is a Board Certified Music Therapist, a Fellow of the Academy of Neurologic Music Therapy, and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. He received his master’s degree in neurologic music therapy from Colorado State University and holds a bachelor’s degree from UCLA in physiological science with additional studies in ethnomusicology. He received specialized training at the UCSF Autism Clinic and at the Center for Biomedical Research in Music in Fort Collins, Colorado.

                                                            He has also worked in the remote village of Kidjaboun in Togo, West Africa as a Peace Corps Volunteer collaborating with UNICEF in the Safe Motherhood and Child Survival project. In addition to working on improving local health care delivery and a chicken farm project run by 21 widows in the village, he also learned the local dialect and studied the drumming culture of the Konkomba warrior tribe.

Pierre has over 11 years of experience in working with children with autism spectrum disorders in early intervention programs both in the home and school setting. He combines this knowledge of both engagement-based and behaviorally oriented approaches with fun and engaging musical interventions. He also applies these behavioral principles in working with children with ADHD and their families.

Starting at a young age on pots and pans, music has always played an important role in his life. Pierre is primarily a drummer and percussionist, but also plays guitar, piano, and sings. When he was 7, he started on the clarinet, then moved to the bass clarinet, and eventually found his home in the pecussion section of the band. At 13, he began playing drum set in local rock bands. During his undergradute years, he began to develop an interest in world music, and specifically West African drumming. He has accompanied modern and West African dance classes as well as performed with rock and bluegrass-fusion bands.