Rachel’s Blog

Today was the third in a pilot series of ‘Singing for Fun’ sessions, so it’s more than time to reflect on how it’s going

Location

Singing for Fun is supported by Age Concern and is held on a Wednesday morning in Witney Methodist Centre. The centre is a fantastic example of how churches can really use their premises for social good. Tea and coffee are available cheaply (50p for a cup of tea) in the lobby area, so it’s a relaxed place to come and meet friends, without having to spend a lot of money on an expensive mug of something-you-can’t-pronounce.

People

The first week 8 people came, the following week there were 11 and this week, 10, plus two carers. In all, about 17 different people.

There is no minimum or maximum age on this project – anyone can join in, although because it is on a weekday morning, and supported by Age Concern, the average age I would guess is around 65. The people who attend are mainly quite ‘young’, but it is really great to see a mixture of people of varying abilities and mobilities.

Workshop Set-up

The sessions are set up in a hall with a circle of chairs – so everyone feels included, although occasionally there have been people who simply want to listen, and whilst they are invited into the circle, they sometimes choose to sit at the edge. I sit in the circle – with a low music stand. Participants have a booklet of the songs we will be singing, approximately in the right order. This saves time during the session because there is no handing out/taking in sheets, and it is simpler for the participants to follow.

The sessions run for an hour – although we don’t usually get started until about 10.25 (the advertised start time is 10.15), but as there is an exercise class at 11.30, I try and finish on time at 11.15. It would be great to try and start on time, so I have more time to introduce some more challenging songs…

…please read the next post for some more reflections on the workshop content and structure.

last Thursday I had so much fun leading a singing session with 20 65+ year-olds. It took place at a fortnightly coffee-club, run by a church in Dean Court. We sang old favourites, some old favourites with the odd twist, as well as some more challenging medleys of songs, the classic O When The Saints, layered with Swing Low, This Train, and I’m Gonna Sing, and the ‘Folkestone Sea Shanty’ which I picked up at the Arts and Heath Conference in Folkestone in September.

I think it went down well, and I’ve been invited back. I think I was able to stop singing at different points during the session and listen to the groups’ voices which was good, and I think possible mainly because they were 20 people present to support each other. I was particularly pleased that chatting afterwards, one woman, nearly 90 said ‘ I’ve never sung before in my life, but I’m too old to try new things’ – I was pleased she enjoyed the session and found it easier than she thought she would.

A few things I need to improve are:

• giving clear instructions – thinking more carefully in advance how to describe different activities.
• expanding the repertoire, although it was useful to cover the same repertoire with different groups
• thinking about how to include the men more. Out of 20 people, only 2 were men. I don’t feel the songs are at the wrong pitch, as many older women have lower voices and sing an octave below me, but I do feel they need encouragement and affirmation in a different way from the women. Answers on a postcard please.

And there was cracking cake. This generation really know how to bake!

On 28th October I joined a Singing for the Brain session supported by the Alzheimers Society. It was a cold, rainy day, but despite this there was a good number of people there – 20 in total with 9 clients and 11 carers/musicians/volunteers. The session began with tea and cake and as people arrived they were given name labels.

An opening song welcomed everybody and affirmed each person by name – always an important aspect of building relationships within a group. An interesting action to this song was to pass around a long ribbon which each person held – and then for everyone to raise their arms, guiding people’s hands with the ribbon, if they were unsure or unco-ordinated for any reason, and it was a way of linking each person together.

My criticism of the session was that it perhaps ‘rattled through’ the repertoire a bit too quickly. We really covered a lot of songs and at times I had the feeling that the clients’ voices were being ‘pasted over’. Another aspect which I, and perhaps others, found difficult was the noise level, especially during the songs which included percussion instruments. This may have been because of the acoustics of the room.

A real challenge for people providing participatory music for older people with dementia is being able to guide them through repertoire in a way which allows that person to express themselves and to engage with others around them.

This session was enjoyed by most of the participants present. It also felt like a great way of bringing together carers going through similar situations. One woman I spoke to who was caring for her husband who had had a stroke commented most strongly on the social aspect of the singing group, and the importance of being with other people, which ties in with a school of thought that social relationships are a major determinant on health.