The power of music 🎶

It is common knowledge that music can help us feel better. Whether it be depression, anxiety or illnesses such as dementia, music definitely creates a sense of well-being. And special tunes are linked to special memories which can have the same effect as taking antidepressants! Research backs up this theory. There is clear proof that music supports our physical, mental and emotional health. Apparently listening to, or making music, can increase blood flow to the brain and this, in turn, helps to control our emotions.

My mother wouldn’t let me hang posters on my bedroom wall but I was allowed to hang them inside my cupboard. Davy Jones took pride of place! When I opened the cupboard door and sat on my bed I could gaze lovingly into Mike’s eyes. And he would gaze lovingly back into mine! This secret crush lasted a number of years until I actually went on a date with him and realised that looks can be skin deep!

Music is often used as therapy for pain management. We all know how debilitating pain can be especially if it’s continuous and medication doesn’t bring relief. Music can activate sensory pathways to compete with pain pathways. This stimulates emotional responses which, in turn, helps to alleviate pain.

The other evening I heard Phil Collin’s version of ‘Groovy Kind of Love’. It transported me back to a world where there were no pandemics, no recessions, life was simple and the sun always shone. I used to imagine dancing cheek to cheek with a boy I really fancied when I was about thirteen. Mike was so handsome and looked like Davy Jones, a member of the band ‘The Monkees’.

My mother always enjoyed dancing and, when we were young, my sister, mother and I would put on a long playing record, open the front door leading to the porch and dance for hours! My brother and father could never understand this strange behaviour and definitely didn’t join in the fun! Dancing has always been my most enjoyable form of exercise and that has a lot to do with those happy memories and the music.

During the pandemic a good friend, an ex PE teacher, kindly offered to hold dance classes on the green in front of our house. This finally moved to a neighbour’s driveway and is now into its third year. We meet three times a week and the kind neighbour’s husband cleared his garage so the weather doesn’t even hold us back. Listening to the music of our youth, learning dance moves and socialising with neighbours who have become good friends, is something money can’t buy. It’s exercise, therapy and companionship all rolled into one.

This same friend and I used to give exercise classes to residents at my mother’s care home when she was alive. They were all in varying stages of dementia, the cruelest of diseases. Music gave then brief respite and they would sing along to songs I’d downloaded from the forties and fifties. We encouraged them to do gentle chair exercises but a number of residents just sat and listened to the music, broad smiles on their faces. Apparently the atmosphere in the care home was vastly improved every Wednesday afternoon after these classes. The residents seemed so much more settled and happy which made our time there really worthwhile.

So, when a friend mentioned starting a Folk Club in our local park room I thought it an excellent idea. This group is primarily about playing music using different instruments and singing a wide range of songs. As mentioned earlier, music is so important and a huge reason why these evenings are so enjoyable. But they also bring together many different talents. Music is an art form and can be appreciated as such. But this same art form comes in various guises. It doesn’t only mean having to play an instrument or sing a song. It can be the rhythm of a poem, the undulating voice of someone sharing an adventure or experience, or the laughter when our resident comedian tells his jokes.

The Folk Club highlights and encourages all these different talents, creating a broad spectrum of people who otherwise would never have socialised together. And then we have our very important spectators who come to support and appreciate the performers. Without their inspiration and encouragement these evenings would not have lasted as long or been as enjoyable and diverse as they are.

I have learnt so much from these gatherings and never thought that I could ever stand up and read something I have written in front of an audience of strangers. It has definitely given me a focus and encouraged me to keep on writing! And enjoying the power of music!