The Lifesongs Project
Evaluation report by Laurie Browne, MA
April 2015
1.0 WHAT IS THE LIFESONGS PROJECT?
The Lifesongs project aims to bring to life memories, reflections and feelings of older people through a combination of theatre, humour, spontaneous music-making and songwriting. Since January 2014, Klawitter Theatre Group’s Hedda Kaphengst and Rod Paton, founder and director of Lifemusic, have been running regular workshops and performances in selected care homes. The project confronts issues involved in the ageing process touching on meaning, significance, memory and loss.
The project is ongoing. Stages 1-3 have been completed and will be reflected on in this report.
1.1 Aims
· To involve and empower older people in participatory music workshops
· To gather informally narratives of their lives
· To test an innovative and sustainable approach to music making with older people (the Lifemusic method)
· To write songs and incidental music based upon the improvisations and stories of participants
· To create a music theatre piece out of the songs and improvisations
· To develop a production model for performances of the musical in care homes and in theatre
· To devise and implement a training programme based around the Lifemusic method and specifically designed for work with older people.
· To provide a viable practice as research framework for sustainable projects with older people
1.2 The Lifesongs project employed the Lifemusic method developed by Dr. Rod Paton of the University of Chichester and explored the outcomes of spontaneous music making within residential Care home settings for older people. This provided a space to explore feelings, evoke memories and express emotions. Working together with Hedda Kaphengst of Klawitter Theatre Group, an interactive musical program was created which would test the effect these workshops had on a group of residents from a selected group of care homes in Ireland. The intention was that any life stories which would naturally emerge from this process would inspire song writing. The ultimate goal was to create the conditions for the inclusion of people in nursing homes as lively members of society whose life experiences are significant.
1.3 PARTICIPANTS
· Dr. Rod Paton of Chichester University in West Sussex, England and Hedda Kaphengst of the Klawitter Theatre Group in Dublin, Ireland organised the project.
· An independent evaluator was invited to gather data through observation and interviews and questionnaires.
· Nursing home residents as well as friends and family were invited to join the workshops.
· Care staff, activity coordinators and managers were asked to assist in observing the residents and provide their own perspective by filling out questionnaires.
· Actors, musicians and singers from Klawitter, who were part of the creative process leading to a workshop performance.
2.0 CONTEXT
2.1 The complex care of people in nursing homes should go beyond bed, board and nursing care. The Health, Information and Quality Authority ( HIQA) published new standards for Nursing homes on the 1st July 2009. Since the introduction of these regulations, Nursing Homes in Ireland must operate under these standards
– the National Quality Standards for Residential Care Settings for Older People in
Ireland. Health care in nursing homes now must include regular provision of “quality of life” activities for their residents.
2.2 These activities are scheduled into the daily routine of the residents and around the care provision and are likely to include musical entertainment by independent service providers, movie afternoons, bingo games, pet therapy, exercise classes, tea parties, Mass, aroma therapy or hobby related activities such as arts and crafts, gardening or baking. The frequency and quality of these activities depend on the budget that is made available by the respective care home and whether an activity coordinator is in charge of the organisation of such activities. Smaller homes with up to 36 residents often do not have a dedicated budget or cannot afford a large range of activities and therefore have a greater reliance on volunteers to carry out such activities.
2.3 It has become standard in more progressive homes to provide reminiscence therapy, a therapy designed to stimulate memories of the past. There may also be planned outings such as theatre visits or trips to local sights or gardens. These activities are usually organised, arranged and executed by an activity coordinator who also encourages residents’ participation.
2.4 In a busy nursing home environment where physical care is the priority and a person’s leisure time may not be taken so seriously, the role of the activity coordinator can be challenging.
2.5 Trying to structure activities around routine and residents’ privacy within the nursing home setting, the scheduling, planning and executing of activities plus including families, managers and care staff can be problematic. Problems can occur from strictly structured and controlled activity. Residents can be forced into routines causing feelings of loss of control over the right to choose as well as causing frustration in residents who may be bored or feel patronised.
2.6 Within this context, the development of innovative programs like the Lifesongs Project, made possible by a grant from the Community Foundation for Ireland is a welcome addition, offering an alternative means of exploring a sense of self and an aid to self- esteem without being obtrusive.
2.7 When observing the Lifemusic method my own understanding of the needs of those in residential care became clearer. Rod Paton brought the wonder back into activity by putting residents in charge of their own creativity. He gave residents the space to freely explore their own abilities of self-expression and communication through music making. The making of music, their own music, became the vehicle to unlock the creativity.
2.8 The Lifemusic Method states that everyone is musical and that there are no wrong notes. This can remove the fear of not being good enough to participate as well as removing the belief that music must be structured and a learned skill.
2.9 Personally I can think of nowhere else where this idea could be of more use than in a nursing home environment where approx. 60% of the residents on average are effected by various degrees of Dementia. If pure emotion can drive the ability to be musical then there are no barriers to being creative and communicative even when mental abilities are compromised.
3.0 METHODOLOGY
In 2014,Hedda Kaphengst and Rod Patonran a series ofLifemusicworkshops in three care homes in Bray and Wicklow. Each home was visited by the workshop team including the evaluator.
3.1 The Lifemusic method has been developed by Dr. Paton to unlock musical potential in participants. It follows these principles
Everyone is musical.
There are no wrong notes in music.
Every sound has a meaning.
Making music is an act of trust
3.2 The workshops are designed to stimulate music making using a diverse collection of percussion instruments provided by Dr.Paton. These ‘instant access’ instruments allow individuals to explore rhythms, change rhythms, join in with existing rhythms or end them. There were no instructions but ‘holding forms’ are used to structure the activity. No other boundaries or rules are imposed and singing was also employed and integrated into the process. Using this wide variety of percussion instruments plus voice, participants create entirely original pieces of music based upon ideas, images, stories and feelings.
3.3 The number of participants in the workshops was between 12 and 20. Stories that emerged during the music-making were noted down and formed the basis for the lyrics of the songs written for residents.
3.4 On November 20th 2014, a workshop performance in the theatre ofthe Mermaid Arts Centre, Braywas presented to participating residents, care staff and relatives.
3.5 The Lifesongs project is ongoing and develops in different stages. Stage 3 has been completed.
Stage 1 – visiting, performing, listening, recording
Stage 2 – reflection/scenography/songwriting
Stage 3 – return visits with interactive workshops
Stage 4 – creating the music/theatre piece
Stage 5 –performance
3.6 Criteria
· Participation is in agreement with the management of the homes.
· Contact with residents is non-intrusive, voluntary and monitored.
· Conversations are informal and grow spontaneously out of the music sessions: there are no questions.
· None of the information will be used directly or explicitly in any way and will serve only as a general background and inspiration in devising a longer piece about the experiences of ageing.
3.7 Execution
The sessions were divided into two parts. Each part lasted approximately one hour. Rod and Hedda lead the workshops. The evaluator along with care staff and/or managers and/or activity coordinators observed the residents participating in the session but also joined in. The latter proved to be very helpful and clearly enhanced the experience for the residents.
In the second half the evaluator presented a series of questions to those residents who were able and willing to answer. In addition, any member of care staff, manager or activities person who had the opportunity to observe residents during the session were asked to complete a questionnaire relating to their opinion of the participants reaction to the session.
4.0 ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONNAIRES
Across the three selected care homes 47 questionnaires were completed by residents. The evaluator sat with the residents and read the four questions out aloud. This was necessary because some residents were affected by physical issues such as impaired vision or hearing and memory problems. Most residents were pleased or surprised that their opinion was asked for.
4.1 What did you enjoy most?
· Seventeen participants responded saying, “The music” or a particular instrument is what they enjoyed most.
· Twenty- three participants gave a positive and emotional response and were more descriptive about their feelings, for example one woman from Ashford House explained how she had never played instruments or sang in front of anyone before and was taken by surprise by her own ability at this stage in her life.
· Another woman simply said, “It made me feel”.
· Six individuals appeared to be non- committal and held their cards close to their chests by saying they thought it was “Rather lovely” or that they “Did not know” without elaborating further.
· One man declared he didn’t enjoy “it at all” and was annoyed that we were in his space. He added that he was expecting someone to come and sing what he called “real music” and that what we were doing was a waste of his time.
· “I feel this is giving me something, I feel it in my heart but can’t put it into words.”
- Wilma, a resident at Kinvara House after a Lifemusic session
· “At first I thought it was weird, but I really got into it. The music that came out was really good”
- A male resident at Kinvara House
4.2 Summary and reflections
The results indicated that most residents were emotionally involved in a positive way. Ohers simply did not know where they stood with the exception of one person who was clearly negative in response to the workshop.
There are many possibilities as to why he reacted the way he did, however the purpose of this project was not to force anything on anyone but to allow emotions to come to the surface without judgement of them. Participation was voluntarily and if someone didn’t like there was the choice of leaving or not participating.
Leaving is more difficult if a resident needs assistance for doing so. This needs a carer’s time which can be a challenge.
4.3 Was there anything that you found difficult?
Out of our group of 47 participants, 34 people said that they had no difficulty and some elaborated on the point, “No, not at all, I was happy and it was pleasant!” Eleven participants answered with yes. Reasons given were health issues, the technicality of the process and on two occasions external circumstances were mentioned. There were 2 people who gave no response to the question.
4.4 Summary and reflections
Overall most of the residents had no problem joining in the experience though a percentage needed some assistance. Knowing when to intervene as an activity unfolds without being obtrusive or patronising can be a challenge. Good communication with care staff is important here since it is necessary to know if someone is having a bad day or if they generally are impaired for health reasons. If a person is hard of hearing then it is of course a more difficult activity. Arthritis can be affecting their ability to hold the instrument or beater. Environment comes into play as well. Is there enough space or are the right people sitting next to one another? Are there unnecessary interruptions occurring? People naturally vary in the nature and level of their needs. It is by inquiring that we find out what can be altered or added to make the activity a better experience for the resident.
No = 72% Yes = 23% No answer = 5%
(Fig. 4.2)
4.5 Could you describe in one word how you felt after the workshop?
A significant number of participants responded positively: 36 out of the 47 gave an upbeat answer. Among the responses were words such as, “happy”, “joy”, “magic”, and “evocative”. Only 4 had a less positive outlook, using the terms such as “tired” or “bored”. 7 individuals were unable to find a word to describe the experience.