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Summary Continuation

The film addresses diseases that impair neurological function, such as, Alzheimer's disease and Dementia, and proposes a treatment option that is said to improve a patient's quality of life and regain a sense of who the patients are, by connecting memory to music from their past. It discusses that the elderly community are on the decline in social status and that western society neglects old age to idealize youth. The trials of spreading awareness about the therapy were also filmed until the release of the documentary helped the cause reach new heights. It includes a series of interviews with esteemed individuals of neurology, geriatrics, and music. The documentary also observes and tells the story of various patients with before and after footage of their experience with music therapy. This therapy has also been proven to be beneficial for children with Autism in developing motor skills and becoming more sociable.

Patient Experiences

Henry: He was a 94 year old patient of Cobble Hill nursing home and had been a resident there for 10 years. He lived with dementia and was described prior to the therapy as mostly immobile and silent by his therapist, Yvonne Russell. After the therapy they witness him becoming more animated and recalling aspects of his past he had not been able to answer before. The neurologist, Dr. Diver Sacks, quotes the German philosopher Immanuel Kant that stated "music is the quickening art" to explain that Henry had been brought to life by the music being presented to him.

Gill: He was a patient at Woodcrest nursing home that would become agitated at his loss of freedom and would not take his medication as described by the recreation director of his facility, Michelle Van Nostrand. After the therapy, Gill was depicted as being much happier, because as Dr. G. Allen Power, a geriatrician in Rochester, New York explained, "music creates spontaneity that you cannot create in an institution".

Denise: She was a bipolar-schizophrenic patient that had been a resident of her facility for two years. After the therapy, she is taped setting aside the walker she had been using for the entire duration of her stay at the nursing home and began to dance. She was also visited by a volunteer musician, Samite Mulondo, that had brought her to tears. He described the music as an outlet to release her frustrations.

Steve: He was a patient with multiple sclerosis whose childhood and adulthood was filled with his love for music and the instruments he played. He said that moving to his facility left him isolated from that part of his life. After being introduced to music therapy he stated, "after 8 years I finally had the opportunity to get my music".

John: He was a patient who had been a WWII veteran and had severe dementia. He also had a background as a performer in Philadelphia when he was a young adult. Prior to the therapy, he was very quiet and remained quite still, he could not recognize younger photos of himself. After the therapy he began to sing along to the music and dance in his wheel chair.

Mary Lou: A woman with Alzheimer's whose husband was her caregiver. She feared being sent to a nursing home as her disease progressed. She had difficulty formulating words and often lost her train of thought. After the therapy, she explained about how she felt when listening to the music, "it can't escape me if I am in this place".

Nell: She had severe dementia and her husband, Norman, had been her caregiver for 10 years without the use of medication. He had been applying music therapy all that time and believed the therapy is what had kept her from long-term care in a facility.

Music and Memory

Music and Memory is a non-profit organization founded by social worker, Dan Cohen. The organization functions in spreading awareness about music therapy and creating personalized playlists for elderly patients with dementia and Alzheimer's Disease based on their music preferences. Music and Memory worked side-by-side with director, Michael Rosatto-Bennet, to create this documentary.