Last year, Live Music Now Northern Ireland secured funding from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s National Lottery Arts and Older People Programme as well as the Public Health Agency, via its Clear Project, to launch the pilot project ‘Music for Dementia’ in partnership with Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.
Delivered in Carlisle Day Centre, Edgcumbe Day Centre, and Knockbracken Day Centre, North Belfast, ‘Music for Dementia’ was delivered over a 24-week period in the form of participatory concerts and calming ambient music sessions to enhance mood, encourage engagement, and provide meaningful social interaction for older people living with dementia in Northern Ireland.
“Research has proven that taking part in arts activities can raise self-esteem, confidence and motivation, as well as aid in relieving stress. […] The arts have a vital role to play in helping our older people find their voice, bring people together and promote positive physical and mental health – funding from The National Lottery has been a game changer in helping us achieve that.” Lorraine Calderwood, Arts Development Officer, Arts Council of Northern Ireland
The two musicians who took part in the weekly and one-to-one sessions were Hannah Murray and William Brown. They form the duo AMPlify – Audience, Music, Participation – and between them, the pair play guitar, bass, ukulele, trumpet, keyboard, and sing. Hannah and Will have extensive experience of working with older people. Each week they played fun and uplifting music for the participatory concerts; adding to and adapting their repertoire to suit the requests from individual participants. The one-to-one sessions allowed for musical interactions that could be explored in greater depth and suit each service user’s interests. The musicians using the names and stories shared to personalise the sessions made a difference to participants. The musicians themselves felt they “learned a lot about isolation and loneliness and the importance of creating a safe space where if service users needed to chat, they could do so”.
“Musicians were excellent at tailoring the session to service users interests and strengths. Very engaging and supportive good at engaging the service users.” Carlisle Day Centre Staff
‘Music for Dementia’ brought 24 individual workshops and six ambient music sessions to over 80 people living with dementia across Northern Ireland. Our evaluation evidence confirms that the project had a positive impact on the wellbeing of participants with 95% of service users demonstrating improved mood both during and post the workshops with such responses as singing, smiling, laughing, dancing, and swaying reported by our evaluators.
“Service user D is very shy and the fact she even sang part of songs was amazing. In their second workshop this usually quiet person sang every song and used the microphone making her voice louder but she was comfortable with it. Talked about the music preferences of her mum and dad.” Carlisle Day Centre Staff
This project exemplifies how music can be a powerful tool in enhancing the lives of individuals with dementia, offering not just entertainment but a deeper sense of connection and engagement.
Service users were reported to have improved mood and engagement both during and immediately after the activity; there is also evidence of positive impact on anxiety beyond the session.
“We have a service user that at times is so anxious he will not engage in a lot of activities he sang a full song (white Christmas) he sang very confidently, and this changed his mood the rest of the day it settled his anxiety and helped staff to engage in more activity in the afternoon as he was not as unsettled.” Carlisle Day Centre Staff
Participants were able take part in activities when they would otherwise face barriers to doing so and were able to communicate through music when spoken language is impaired.
“Service User J has limited conversations usually but sang coherently got up and danced with the musician and just had a lovely time” Carlisle Day Centre Staff
To address diverse participant needs and barriers to engagement, 72 one-to-one music sessions were provided for those unable to join group activities. Evaluation evidence highlights the music’s calming and grounding effects on individuals who would otherwise miss out.
“[The] ambient sessions provided a calm atmosphere, and it was noticeable how much it settled service users who usually do not wish to sit at the table and engage in activities.” Carlisle Day Centre Staff
By tailoring sessions to meet individual needs, the initiative ensures that even the most vulnerable participants benefit from the healing and uplifting effects of music, creating a lasting positive impact on their mental and emotional well-being.
Since the ‘Music for Dementia’ project, Live Music Now has successfully secured additional funding to bring more live music to day centres across Northern Ireland with the hope to offer further life enhancing services via the medium of music to individuals living with dementia.
