Harp therapy is largely based on modal music. Therapeutic harp practitioners are taught to compose and improvise music for individuals. One (admittedly rather cerebral) way to approach this is through the Renaissance art of modal counterpoint.
Modal, or species counterpoint is not taught in therapeutic harp programs because of its complexity, but for people who have been working at theory for a while, it can be a wonderful refinement to a basic background and understanding of the modes.
If you'd like to learn about some of the playing rules of the game of modal counterpoint (try thinking of it as a game!), check out this excellent tutorial:
http://legacy.earlham.edu/~tobeyfo/musictheory/Book1/FFH1_CH2/2G_ModalCounterpoint.html
If you'd like to learn more about modes and how to improvise and play by ear on the harp. I highly recommend Christina Tourin's "Creative Harping" series. Each video only costs about as much as a private harp lesson and what you'll learn will be worth so much more!
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