Music & Memory

A video “Story of Henry – Alive Inside” gained 160,000 views around the world since it was first uploaded onto YouTube in 2010. Henry, a 94-year-old dementia patient who resides in a nursing home, was very isolated as he slowly lost the ability to communicate. But when an iPod full of his favorite music was given to him, his eyes lit up and responded to others around him again.

In the March meeting of the Lower East Side Inter-Agency Council, Dan Cohen, MSW, founding Executive Director of Music & Memory, Inc. was invited as the guest speaker. Albert Eshoo, owner of Right at Home of Lower Manhattan, attended and sponsored breakfast for the event.

“Our brains are hard-wired to connect music with long-term memory. Even for persons with severe dementia, music can tap deep emotional recall,” explained Dan. “Favorite music or songs associated with important personal events can trigger memory of lyrics and the experience connected to the music.”

Music helps patients with progressive brain disorder diseases to retrieve memories buried deep in their mind. While their short-term memory may be impaired, music memories tend to linger and patients tend to respond positively to music from their youth.

“The result is an improved quality of life,” said Dan. “Music therapy reduces perception of pain, improves outcome from rehabilitation, manages behavioral challenges and depression, reduces loneliness of old age or chronic illnesses.”

The meeting was held at the Henry Street Settlement. About 30 case managers and social workers attended the morning event. As the newly launched bundled-payment initiative is currently mandatory in 67 hospitals including some in New York, Albert also shared information about Right at Home’s RightTransitions – a program that helps seniors to adjust back to daily life after a hospital admission, a plan that enables them to decrease the risk of re-admission.

Download the Music & Memory Guide for instructions on how to build a personalized playlist for a loved one.