Growing evidence suggests that lifelong learning can help combat cognitive decline, but many older adults with dementia avoid traditional classes for fear of not being able to keep up.
To address this gap, Northwestern University researchers created The Musical Museum, a live concert and lecture series designed specifically for people with neurocognitive disorders and their caregivers.
A new paper detailing the program, developed by the Northwestern Music Medicine Program (NMMP), finds that it improves emotional well-being, intellectual stimulation, and social interaction. According to the survey, participants reported high satisfaction and significantly improved mood after the session.
“The program provided peace, relaxation, and catharsis that sometimes brought tears to my eyes,” one participant reported. Other participants expressed appreciation for the social benefits of the program, with one participant saying, “It’s a great opportunity to expand your connections with people who are going through similar experiences.”
This paper will be published on July 20th. frontiers of neurology.
“Music remains intact for dementia patients for a long time, so music museums are a very good way for dementia patients to regulate their emotions and provide intellectual and cognitive stimulation,” said Dr. Borna Bonakdalpour, director of NMMP and corresponding author, a classically trained pianist who performs in many concerts. “We always want to keep their brains stimulated.”
Bonakdalpour is an associate professor of behavioral neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a behavioral neurologist at Northwestern Medicine. He and study author Clara Takarabe developed the music museum to continue supporting isolated dementia patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
How the music museum works
Attracting an average of 50 participants per event, this innovative series creates a safe and stimulating space for individuals with neurocognitive disorders, their caregivers, and other program supporters to experience hour-long sessions of diverse music (both familiar and unfamiliar), enhanced by oral introductions that provide historical and musical context. One participant said in a survey, “I especially liked the historical context of the works. It made me appreciate the new works even more and helped me understand the works I already knew.”
Post-concert receptions encourage limited social interaction among this population.
It is common for people with dementia to become nervous or shy and isolated, especially if their language skills are impaired. So this is a great way to release people with dementia and a good opportunity to meet people with dementia outside of a clinical setting. ”
Dr. Borna Bonakdalpour, Associate Professor of Behavioral Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Participants in this paper attended 11 sessions spanning musical genres including bossa nova, jazz, and baroque. Each session of the Musical Museum was built around a theme that integrated philosophical concepts such as love loss and time with culturally significant periods for older adults, particularly the 1960s and 1970s.
Familiar music is defined as music that is likely to have been popular during the audience’s early to late adolescence, and previous research has shown that it may improve autobiographical memory and self-consciousness and reduce arousal. Unfamiliar music is generally tonal, has culturally diverse melodies, and is sometimes based on traditional folk songs from different geographic regions.
“We decided to call it a museum because we treat each piece of music as if it were hand-picked for a museum,” Bonakdalpour said. “We combine science and creativity to provide a lifeline to people navigating the challenges of cognitive decline and create joy and connection through art.”
Other Northwest authors include Jonathan Chao, Melanie Chan, and Katherine Vidano.
