Therapeutic Music Instruction for Seniors and Older Adults

There is an old saying which goes, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, in reference to the difficulty of learning new things at an older age. Boy, is that saying untrue! One of the greatest things we’ve learned throughout our experience as Music Therapists and Music Instructors is that age and experience can prepare our clients to be patient, diligent, and even faster learners. As we humans spend more time here on this Earth, we absorb plenty of valuable lessons that can be harder for young learners to adhere to, such as, listening quietly - so that it’s easier to fully absorb information, slowing down and taking your time to learn new or “difficult” things, or even that it is okay to make mistakes - it’s all a part of the process.

These are the kinds of lessons that we witness our more seasoned clients embody, often with ease. Our Senior clients can also be very supportive of their peers’ learning, taking the time out to put a friend’s hand in the right place, staying back or offering time to practice together, or just providing genuine verbal encouragement and support.

Seniors who want to learn new things can be the liveliest crew, making our jobs even more fun and exciting. Every lesson with a Senior class is often an exchange, concluding in both the instructor and the class learning something new from each other, lots of loving energy, and excitement for the new classes to come. We love our Seniors!

Here are some great activities for Seniors and the tested theories behind them all:

Group Piano Instruction: Piano play has been proven to maintain and increase joint flexibility in the hands and aids in the strengthening of wrist and arm muscles. The patterned nature of the keyboard can also improve memory and “spatial mapping”, which we use to navigate our environment. To get around, we must remember the places we’ve been and important landmarks along the way. Piano play exercises and reinforces these skills.

Group Singing and Voice Instruction: The art of “lifting every voice” has always held spiritual value. Singing is a powerfully expressive method of music making which can provide mental release and unite community on one accord. Seniors can get together and sing their hearts out to songs they all collectively know and love. Cognitively, singing has been proven to improve speech and language processing. Physiologically, it can improve lung function, increase breath capacity, and slow the heart rate through the effective practice of diaphragmatic breathing.

Group Songwriting: Coming together to write a song can often seem like an impossible feat, but in our experience this can be one of the simplest and most rewarding activities of all. Whether reminiscing about the “good old days”, sharing perspectives on love and community, or writing a “Senior Center Anthem”, the feeling of release and accomplishment post the creation of a new song is incomparable. Group Songwriting is effectively a great expressive, collaborative, and relational tool.

Music and Memory: As people age, memory can start to fade. This is only worsened by the onset of Alzheimer’s or dementia. Thankfully, our favorite songs can become deeply attached to our memories and emotions due to music’s ability to engage multiple brain centers at once. With the use of personalized playlists and popular music, seniors can recover memories, calm erratic behaviors, discuss shared memories from that era, and more. Watch a short video regarding this interesting phenomenon here.

Music and Movement: Ever notice that when listening to music while walking or moving, we often subconsciously begin to move to the beat? This is because music deeply affects the parasympathetic, autonomic, and somatic nervous systems. Fast paced or steadily metered music can help prime our bodies for movement - making exercising, walking, sitting, standing, hitting a drum, or shaking a shaker nearly effortless, even when previously labored. This is great for movement jams, dancing, or exercise classes. Conversely, listening to slow music can slow us down, steadying the heart rate, calming the mood, and even help to induce rest.

No matter the exercise or activity, two of the greatest gifts of group instruction, socialization and self-actualization, are always ever present. Being able to take in this new - yet familiar, experience with peers is just as fun as recognizing and remembering one’s true capabilities. This is the foundational basis of Hit Me With Music’s group programming and the experience we look forward to sharing with you!

A few photos from Senior Piano classes led by our founder, Chana Jamison