What is the Raise Your Voice charity project at Glyndebourne?

It's a project where people with dementia compose original songs, using music to unlock memories and express emotions.

How does composing music help people with dementia?

It stimulates creativity, unlocks residual memory and conversation, and provides emotional and cognitive support.

Where was the dementia songwriting project recorded?

The songs were recorded at Glyndebourne opera house, a venue with a rich musical heritage.

Home / Arts and Entertainment / Dementia Patients Compose Music at Glyndebourne

Dementia Patients Compose Music at Glyndebourne

25 Nov

•

Summary

Dementia patients are composing original songs at Glyndebourne.
Music project aims to unlock memories and express emotions.
Project utilizes weekly workshops with musicians and facilitators.

Dementia Patients Compose Music at Glyndebourne

Individuals living with dementia are engaging in a unique songwriting project at Glyndebourne opera house, composing original music that expresses their current emotions and memories. This initiative aims to challenge public perceptions by demonstrating that creativity can flourish even as cognitive abilities decline, unlocking sensations and connections to the world.

The project, a collaboration between Raise Your Voice charity, Glyndebourne, the Royal Academy of Music, the Alzheimer's Society, and Arts Council England, involves weekly workshops. Facilitated by musicians and artists, these sessions encourage participants to share their inner experiences, which then form the basis for new song lyrics and melodies.

Neurological experts are also studying the project, noting how active music creation can awaken residual memory and conversation abilities. The charity hopes this work will be recognized as a vital form of cognitive and emotional support for those affected by dementia.