Primary Education Topic:
Mental Health & Aging
Other Education Topics:
Aging in Community
Caregiving
Creativity and Lifelong Learning
Almost as soon as Cohen placed headphones on people and turned on the music, which was custom-programmed to have a connection with their past, he saw their features soften as they began to sway and dance and sing along, transported to another time and way of being.
By Alison Biggar
Dan Cohen, founder and executive director of Music & Memory in Mineola, New York, originally thought managers of nursing homes and other institutions housing older adults would take his simple idea—having people with advanced dementia listen to personalized sets of music via iPod—and run with it. After all, Cohen had found that this activity clearly brought happiness to the listeners, with an immediate effect not seen with medication or other activities.