The Power of Music Therapy
Music Therapist Ling Yu Hsiao spreads joy throughout Iowa and beyond
In late 2020, musician Ling Yu Hsiao walked into our lives right through our front door with a mask on her face and a guitar on her back. As a certified music therapist for St. Croix Hospice, she was assigned to visit my terrific father-in-law, who was suffering from medically-induced dementia brought on by his cancer treatments.
My wonderful wife, Jen, was the primary caregiver for both of her parents through a difficult period that sadly culminated in the passing of first her mother, Connie, then her father, Keith. It was a challenging four-year period in our life, but we appreciated the comfort, compassion and wisdom of hospice care.
Dementia is a devastating ailment, both for the patient and their loved ones. It’s an absolute grind. Visits from Ling brought smiles and moments of serenity—a happy respite for us all. There was never any doubt about whether her visits were a positive influence. Keith would sit up a little straighter, communicate with a little more zest, and reminisce about growing up in a musical family. I’d often play and sing for Keith, but Ling brought an ineffable charm and grace into our home. Her songs, stories and questions were full of memories and joy.
Keith passed in early 2021 and I hadn’t seen Ling since that time, but that changed a couple of weeks ago when she allowed me to shadow her for a day and learn more about her life and training as a certified music therapist.
Ling Yu Hsiao was born in Puli, Taiwan in 1981. She told me Puli was kind of “like a West Des Moines-sized community but in Taiwan” with a little chuckle as we chatted. Her mother, Ming-Hui Chen, taught Ling piano from early childhood, encouraging her to “serve God with music.” Ling’s mother was a kindergarten teacher in Taiwan and Ling was raised in a Presbyterian community. Here she is with her parents in the early 1980s:
At the age of 10, her family of four would move to the United States in search of a more prosperous life. Her Dad, Feng-Yen Hsiao, had some family in the New York area. They landed in Queens, New York in 1992, and eventually settled in Long Island. The transition to life in America was both rewarding and challenging. Learning English was particularly difficult, especially for Ling’s mother, Ming-Hui.
Ling stayed extremely focused on her music development. She became an accomplished flutist in high school and was quite adept in her Western Music knowledge, from composition to reading music. When it came time to further her education after high school, all eyes were on music.
After attending a couple of schools in New York (including NYU), Ling earned a Bachelor of Science in music with a piano concentration from CUNY Queens College in 2005. Next, she taught private lessons and applied for the elite Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, but she “wasn’t good enough yet,” so while teaching others she took private lessons herself to gain acceptance into the school. In 2007, after two more years of hard work, she was accepted into Eastman where she graduated in 2009 with her Masters of Music completing a Piano Accompanying Major.
During her studies, she lost her mother to suicide as a result of depression. Ming-Hui was only 46, Ling just 21. Ling believes the depression was due to a combination of issues, with isolation being at the core because of her mom’s difficulty with English. Due to the language barrier, her occupation was much less rewarding than the active primary teacher role she had enjoyed in Taiwan. Ling also believes that her mother experienced difficult menopausal changes that brought on mental strife, so Ling openly shares her family tragedy to build awareness and help others avoid similar tragedy.
After her mother’s passing, Ling was more determined than ever to find ways to “give back to community through music” and honor her mother’s legacy by helping others with her gift. Music also helped Ling as she healed from the loss of her mother. The symbiosis wasn’t lost on her. As a collaborative pianist and private instructor, Ling found consistent work, but deep down she felt she could use her skills for a greater good. She decided to look more deeply into the field of music therapy. Having only lived in Taiwan and New York, she was open to a new adventure but unsure of its direction until she happened upon a documentary about the Appalachian Trail. Fascinated with its beauty and story, Ling wondered if there might a music therapy program in this gorgeous area.
She quickly learned about Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. Ling’s first visit to the campus in the mountains was a “winter wonderland” and it pulled at her heart strings even more, so she moved there in 2013. Three years later, at age 35, she graduated with a music therapy degree.
Ready to get back into the working world and share her skills, Ling applied for a position with St. Croix Hospice. It required a move to the Midwest, more specifically the state of Iowa. Ling happily accepted the offer and told me she knows she’s exactly where she should be almost a decade later.
Ling deeply believes in the power of music to heal and comfort. She’s been lifting up her fellow Iowans for almost a decade now, improving the quality of life for so many with her tenderness and training. Struggles with cancer, loneliness, memory loss, late-life frustrations and challenging interpersonal situations are lion’s dens that Ling enthusiastically walks into to serve others. “Music is helpful, so I really want to be there for people,” she tells me.
On any given week, she has about 50 active patients with varying level of interactions and mental acuity, all in a hospice program where the focus on quality of life takes precedent over quantity. Ling says that “when we connect, I know I’m really doing my job.” Ling and her colleagues go beyond simply entertaining. They start with a situational analysis and customize a unique approach for each patient. Music therapists complete several courses in the fields of psychology and mental wellness as well as general anatomy and physiology. They walk into rooms with open hearts and trained minds, ready to help each wonderful person whose ears and soul are on the other side of their music.
It’s no wonder when I think of our beloved Papa Keith and Ling, I see him smiling. Something as simple as a smile during a caregiver journey brings joy that is difficult to articulate. It gives you the window to see that loved one in the moment as you’ve always known them and carries tremendous power.
When I reached out to Ling about this story idea, she was quite receptive but said she wouldn’t be able to connect for a few weeks, as she was back home visiting family in Taiwan. I later learned that she was home visiting her ailing father, Feng-Yen. Feng-Yen passed during her month-long visit back to Taiwan on April 4th, 2025. He loved American folk music especially Peter, Paul and Mary. Ling was there for her dad, singing songs like “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “Leaving on a Jet Plane” with her impressive skillset and infectious smile, the way she has been here for so many fathers in Iowa—unearthing smiles and even occasionally helping these fine gentlemen find their dancing shoes once again.
God bless you, Ling, for your wonderful work. And may God bless all of the caregivers on this Father’s Day taking care of those that took such good care of us along the way. We see you and we appreciate you.
There’s much more to Ling’s story and the power of Music Therapy. Look for more stories and insights from my conversation with her in future Chip Happens columns. Until then, let’s take comfort in knowing that wonderful people like Ling are out there putting consistent and meaningful kindness into the world making it a better place.
To find more stories and insights across the state of Iowa, please consider following and supporting the many talented journalists and storytellers of the Iowa Writer’s Collaborative of which I’m a proud member.
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My next show is Sunday, June 22 as part of Musicians Against Hunger: A Guitar Circle Picnic with
et al at Grace United Methodist Church, 3700 Cottage Grove Avenue in Des Moines, at 6pm on the front lawn. We’re asking for donations of canned goods and non-perishable items to help stock their food pantry.Also, here is the Zoom link for this month’s Office Lounge for paid subscribers to the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. It’s a lively conversation held at noon on the last Friday of the month, hosted by Robert Leonard.