BY JESSIE WANG, LEAD WRITER (COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL AWARENESS)
There’s been a lot of emerging research on the cognitive benefits of music, so naturally, we musicians would like to say that music should be brought to as many people as possible.
But the next question is, who do you bring music to next? Do you reach out to school kids? Or should you play gentle music while they’re still in the womb? Do you bring music to those with dementia to try to help improve their memories and quality of life?
Ben Thompson-Star and Danai Fadgyas from Community Music Project, 2018 brought with it the chance to share music with anybody and everybody who wants to play. (You can catch up on the fun in this interview with the two artists.) But this year, they’re out to share music with aged care residents living in Sydney’s Inner West. And with music as diverse as a bluegrass band to a saxophone quartet, the residents sure sound like they’re in for something special.
We chat with Ben and Danai once again, and this time they jointly discuss their upcoming Autumn Sessions.
Hi, Ben and Danai! What is happening in the Autumn Sessions and how are they different to the Sunday jams from before?
The Community Music Project began in January 2018 with the purpose of creating a movement of community music sharing and inspiring lifelong participation with music.
After identifying a need to get more musicians sharing more music with older people in our communities, the Autumn Sessions Project was sparked.
The Autumn Sessions will provide performance opportunities for local musicians to share their musical talents with older residents living in the Inner West of Sydney.
With thanks to the support of Inner West Council, Music NSW, and Uniting, we are excited to be able to bring this project to life in 2019; and hope to continue inspiring and advocating for the role of music in enhancing health and wellbeing outcomes for older people across Sydney.
Why did you decide to bring music to aged care residents? Was there a specific event that made you decide on this particular population?
Last year, we began playing music for the residents of Uniting Locke Haven aged care facility in Petersham. At our first performance, we arrived to a room full of residents sitting silently in armchairs, glued to a television screen, which admittedly did lead us to feel quite nervous about whether or not we would be able to connect with the audience. However, as soon as we started playing, we instantly realised that this would be one of the most engaged and appreciative audiences we had ever played for. We also witnessed a clearly visible transformation in mood, and many emotive responses and connections with the music that we played.
Our favourite example of this responsiveness was the very loud chorus of resident singers that accompanied our performance of Jingle Bells at a recent Christmas concert. This wonderful personal experience then got us thinking about how we could encourage more musicians to share their passion for playing music with more aged care residents.
Tell us about the musicians that will play at these Autumn Sessions. Where are they from? What kind of music will they play?
We have been overwhelmed by the passion, talent, and number of musicians who were interested in in sharing music with aged care residents in Sydney’s Inner West. The residents are really in for a treat with a wide range of music to meet their different musical interests, including a saxophone quartet, a bluegrass band, jazz, classical, folk, pop and Latin musical influences.
What are you hoping people will get out of the Autumn Sessions; and by people, I mean both the performers and the aged care residents?
Music can have an enormous impact on our mental wellbeing and physical health, because human responsiveness to music is universal. There is a growing body of research which is showing the transformative benefits of music on brain health, memory function, and emotional responsiveness. When we perform for aged care residents, these are certainly areas where we have observed visible impacts on our audiences.
Through the project, we are confident that increased connection to live music performance will further contribute to enhancing health and wellbeing outcomes for older residents, and creating a really special experience for all involved.
Performing for an appreciative audience of aged care residents is also a unique and hugely fulfilling experience for musicians. We hope that the musicians will be inspired through sharing their love of music, and connecting with older people in the local community.
Lastly, some of us missed out on signing up for these Autumn Sessions. How can we engage with CMP once autumn is over?
We are passionate about seeing as many musicians as possible sharing their love of music with older people in their communities. An easy way to get started is to contact an aged care facility near you, and ask if they would be open to you coming in to share some music. We are also very happy for you to reach out to us online if you would like to further discuss opportunities for inter-generational music sharing.
Learn more about Ben, Danai, and the Community Music Project on the website.
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Images supplied. Credit: Jack Mounsey. Featured image of Jessie with Ben and Danai.
