Our Music Club
Music sessions for people living with dementia
Our Music Club: free music sessions for adults living with dementia and their households or supporters, in collaboration with Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Service.
Our Music Club, uses music to improve quality of life of participants by making music together. Supported by three professional musicians, sessions provide a joyful and connective opportunity for people to be together in the present.
My confidence has definitely got a lot better since I’ve started coming…
The main thing is the friends that I’ve made through music, which is such an easy way to get to know people.
Our Music Club participant
![Our Music Club_credit Benjamin Pryor (6) An older man sitting down holds maracas above his head as other people join him in making music](https://images.bristolbeacon.org/uploads/2022/09/Our-Music-Club_credit-Benjamin-Pryor-6.jpg?resize=16%2C10&gravity)
- Our Music Club Timeline
- August 2021: Free MP3 players sent to group members’ homes with tailored playlists
- September 2021: Music sessions established for people living with dementia
- December 2021: Named ‘Our Music Club’ by group members
- March 2022: HRH Duke of Kent visits Bristol Beacon and joins in with an Our Music Club session
- Summer 2022: Sessions double in size since January 2022, reaching 10 households with a total of 23 participants: 10 living with dementia and 13 friends or family members.
Impacts we’ve seen in Our Music Club members
Short term:
- Positive mood changes after each session.
Medium term:
- Word use has increased
- Interactions more joyful, easeful and relaxed.
Long term:
- Activity – participants joining more clubs or picking up forgotten hobbies.
- Independence – participants travelling by taxi unaccompanied.
What happens in a session?
Our Music Club is led by three musicians who form a ‘mini-band’.
Sessions start as a coffee morning with refreshments, and then move into an hour of music making. The club invites people to make music together in the present moment with activities such as:
- Physical and vocal warm ups
- Learning new songs
- Music appreciation
- Improvisations
- Conducting exercises
Joining Our Music Club
The project receives referrals and ongoing support and guidance from the Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Service, and we share the opportunity more broadly across the dementia and older people’s networks including Age UK, Singing for the Brain, Alzheimer’s UK.
We collaborate with Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Navigators to refer us participants and consult with them on any changes in participants so we can see the person ‘in the round’.
If you feel you, a family member or a person you support would benefit from joining Our Music Club, please speak to your GP, Dementia Navigator or contact us at the address below.
Sessions
Sessions are free, sign-up is required.
Thursdays
11:00 – 12:30
Location
Main Hall, Filwood Community Centre, Barnstaple Rd, Bristol BS4 1JP
Project partners and funders
Our Music Club is run partnership with the Bristol Dementia Wellbeing Service and supported by The Anchor Society, Grateful Society, St. Monica’s Trust and Paul Hamlyn Foundation. (887)
![Logos Paaul hamlyn logo, grateful society logo, st monica logo, anchor society logo](https://images.bristolbeacon.org/uploads/2022/06/Logos.jpg)
Read more about our work with communities
![Duke of Kent-March 20022_credit ShotAway-4 A young female musician wearing a yellow jumper plays acoustic guitar and smiles.](https://images.bristolbeacon.org/uploads/2022/03/Duke-of-Kent-March-20022_credit-ShotAway-4.jpg?resize=16%2C10&gravity)
The Power of Music - supporting people living with dementia
- Bristol Beacon News
![London Symphony Orchestra_care home concert_credit York Tillyer-9](https://images.bristolbeacon.org/uploads/2021/10/London-Symphony-Orchestra_care-home-concert_credit-York-Tillyer-9.jpg?resize=16%2C10&gravity)
Care Homes across the country delight at LSO performance
- Bristol Beacon News