Hendrickson’s perception of theory of transfer and multi-sensory processes in developing violin skills and likewise promoting speech in non-verbal autistic children

South Australian, Lyndall Hendrickson AM (1917-2017) led a lifetime of achievements as a prodigy, concert violinist, polio survivor, violin instructor and teacher of language and music to non-verbal autistic students. Her career halted when she contracted poliomyelitis at the age of 34. To regain motor skill, Hendrickson researched theories of human performance and followed developments of cognitive neuroscience. In the 1970s, she experimented with violin teaching and learning through multi-sensory channels of information. Whilst Hendrickson was not the only teacher who wrote drills, used large notation, colour, stories and focused on the actions of technique, she formulated her own series of exercises designed
to map an order of finger movements, that would normally not be employed in beginner lessons. Hendrickson used theories of transfer and perception in explaining violin exercises. At the age of 73, she followed new career paths in working with non-verbal autistic children and developed a multi-sensory based program aimed to encourage speech.