Working in care homes
I enjoyed reading ‘Cultivating a Community’ in the June issue of MT. It reminded me of a rather humorous experience I once had, playing music in a care home.
Many years ago I played in a steel-pan group. One year we were asked to play at a local care home, but the band as a whole was unavailable. I was available, as it happened, and so, as the care home was very close to where I lived, I offered to do the gig solo – which was accepted.
I took along my pan and did what I could, making the music as enjoyable as possible, conscious that many parts were missing and I was playing solo. The first half of the gig went well, with residents singing along, smiling away and moving to the music. I took a short break to rehydrate and started the second half.
It was towards the end of this – the last 10 minutes or so – that an elderly gentleman suddenly started shouting ‘MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE, MAKE IT STOP!’. A couple of carers mouthed ‘sorry’ to me as they quickly took the resident away from the group. Despite the fact that the majority of the residents loved the live music, that one resident’s reaction has stayed with me for years. At least I can laugh about it now – I was mortified at the time!
I’d be interested to know why my music caused such an adverse reaction, particularly so late into my performance. I don’t know if the gentlemen had dementia, wore a hearing aid, or whether the sound was simply too loud; perhaps it had built up to a level that was uncomfortable and, being a wheelchair-user, he felt unable to remove himself quickly and needed help.
I’d be interested to learn from contributors or readers about the lesser-known effects of music, or indeed sound, on conditions such as Alzheimer’s.
