@JasonDG said:

First, great essay! Very personal, reflective, and insightful. Thanks! Question: One of my takeaways from your essay is the relationship between "therapeutic alliance" and the improvisational experience. Live improvisational music embodies aspects of hereness and nowness (think of Ram Dass, "Be Here Now"). And such immediacy invites and necessitates vulnerability. That vulnerability is part of both therapy and Phish (as you explain). Is it possible that the overall live Phish experience is one large therapeutic session? Where each of us is acting as both client and therapist? And might this help explain why some people like Phish and some don't? Similar to how some people are receptive to therapy while others are not?

Thanks so much, Jason! I wouldn't say the Phish experience is one large therapeutic session. That said, I think the aspect of vulnerability and willingness to think and experience creatively that emerges on stage and in the audience affects all involved. Some people approach therapy ready to explore this way with a therapist. Others might have a different relationship to the process, and as you said, sometimes that comes with ambivalence. Also, not all therapists work with an emphasis on creativity, intersubjectivity, and vulnerability.

What Phish has with their audience is similar to a therapeutic alliance in part because it's a good fit! The band and audience connect in such a way that allows for vulnerability, exploration, and more to emerge. The unknown can be tolerated and braved together!