The Power of Music: the 2026 Past Student Awards with Maggie James (’97, nee Leung)

This award was created in 2024 to celebrate alumni who have a commitment to servant leadership through vision, contribution and example, embodying the philosophy and values of the Sisters of the Society of the Sacred Advent, and go above and beyond to make a meaningful, lasting impact on their community and the lives of others.

Maggie is a Paediatric Music Therapist and the Clinical Lead of the Music Therapy Department at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, having dedicated 23 years to Children’s Health Queensland. Her work, however, extends globally, with her specialty in neurologic music therapy in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit taking her into volunteer positions in several critical-care orphanages in China, the Board of the Butterfly Children’s Hospice, and the International Conference on Children’s Music Therapy in Norway. Maggie is committed to creating sustainable, equitable music therapy services that will benefit children and their families for years to come, and her leadership has been extended by her completion of her MBA at The University of Queensland.

For those who were unable to join Maggie at the Past Student Awards Dinner in March, below is a copy of her speech, an amazing account of the power of music in forging connection and its role in the human experience.

“It is a privilege to receive the St Margaret’s Spirit of Service Award. I feel deeply grateful to be recognised by the St Margaret’s community, a place that played such an important role in shaping my early years.

I would like to acknowledge the patients and families I work with at the Queensland Children’s Hospital. Thank you for trusting me, and for the music we create together.

When I think back to my time as a student here, music was simply something I loved. Like many students, I spent hours practising scales, preparing for performances, and discovering both the discipline and joy that comes with learning an instrument. At the time, I certainly did not imagine that music would one day become the centre of my professional life, or that it would lead me into hospital rooms and into some of the most fragile moments of a child’s life.

As a Paediatric Music Therapist, my work is supporting children who are critically sick, many in intensive care, and some receiving palliative care. In that environment, music becomes deeply purposeful. It helps reduce pain, supports rehabilitation, and gives children a way to express and make sense of their feelings.

Neuroscience tells us that music activates every major region of the brain at once: the auditory cortex processes sound, the motor cortex responds to rhythm, the limbic system regulates emotion, and the brainstem influences heart rate and breathing. When a child engages in music making, the brain begins to synchronise. Breathing slows, heart rate steadies, and the nervous system begins to settle.

But what stays with me most isn’t the science. It's the human experiences. One of these came through our own family.

Our daughter spent her time in the intensive care after a life-saving surgery, surrounded by machines and wires.  Although I spend much of my professional life in ICU environments, it feels very different when it is your own child lying there. I remember standing beside her bed feeling completely powerless. I couldn’t pick her up. I couldn’t cuddle her.

So, I began to sing. Singing allowed me to stay close to her, to let her hear my voice and know that I was there. That moment reminded me, in the most personal way, that music reaches beyond notes and melody.

It is connection. It is presence. And in times of vulnerability, it is a powerful form of care.

Today she is healthy, thriving, and still sings every day to express herself.

I would like to acknowledge two people who played an important role in my journey: Brad King, my first music teacher, and Gillian Smith, my piano teacher. You made a real difference to a young student; you saw my potential. You nurtured confidence and a love of music that eventually travelled far beyond the Sister Helen Orchestra Room and into the lives of many children and families during their time in hospital.

This award feels especially meaningful as our daughters begin their own journeys at St Margaret’s this year. It also marks the beginning of a wonderful collaboration, with the St Margaret’s Primary Choir and String Quartet performing at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, creating opportunities for young musicians to share their music with children and families in our care. I hope this gives our students the chance to experience not only the joy of music but also the impact of sharing it with others.

Because often, the most powerful care is the simplest: being there for one another. And in those moments, music carries a quiet strength, bringing comfort and hope. Thank you again to St Margaret’s for this honour.”