Phillip Mauskapf

Phil Mauskapf, MS, MT-BC is a board-certified music therapist, performer, educator, and trainer. After graduating with a degree in Music Theory and Composition from the University of Pittsburgh, he acquired his Music Therapy degree from Duquesne University in 2009. Phil then earned his Master of Science degree in Music Therapy from IUPUI in 2011 while helping research the effects of music therapy on adults and children undergoing cancer treatment.

For over a decade he worked at Western Psychiatric Hospital where he ran DBT-informed music therapy groups as a means for patients to overcome and cope with psychiatric crises. There he worked with a variety of populations including patients with eating disorders, intellectual disabilities, autism, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and mood disorders. His research focused on a ‘Recording Studio' program where he worked with adolescents through songwriting and recording to improve self-expression, improve goal-oriented thinking, process experiences, improve self-esteem, build positive social experiences, and develop skills to manage anxiety.  

Currently, he works for the Watson Institute as an Educational Consultant working in Emotional Support classrooms throughout Pittsburgh as well as supporting teaching in Life Skills and Autism centered classrooms using TEACCH strategies to support neurodiverse children and adults.  He also serves on the board and as a consultant for Beyond Words Creative Arts Therapy, a private practice that offers creative arts therapy to those in Western Pennsylvania and advocates for creative arts therapies of all modalities.

Aside from being a professor of Music Therapy and Guitar at Duquesne, Phil also performs as a solo artist as well as with his band, "Gallatin Hall" and teaches private guitar lessons.

• M.S., Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis
• B.S., Duquesne University
• B.A., University of Pittsburgh

• Music Therapy
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy
• Structured Teaching in Autism
• Emotional Support and Mental Health
• Guitar- Performance and Teaching