When I look back to how my love affair with music started, I can thank my Irish grandparents for igniting the spark. They’d visit every other weekend and give me sixpence to sing while grandma played the fiddle and grandad the melodeon. My six year old self thought it was a great way to make money. Later, when my dad was stationed in the RAF in Egypt and Africa in the fifties, he brought back a collection of LPs. Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole and Sinatra sung a soundtrack to my early years when everyone else was dancing to rock and roll. From my very first gig at 18 at the local working men’s ..read more

The Song Book, recently launched by Shared Harmonies CIC, contains a set of songs in different languages and guidance on how they might be used in singing groups for people living with dementia . They also produced a Practitioner Guide for people who are thinking of starting singing for dementia groups. These are available free on the Shared Harmonies website  They are running a song share workshop on zoom on Saturday 22 April to teach some of the songs and encourage people to think about how they can be used in different contexts, in particular for people living with dementia or other he ..read more

Singing legend Tony Christie has joined with Music for Dementia to launch Thank You Day 2023, taking place on Sunday 2 July. And we want you to be part of it. Tony appeared on BBC Breakfast to announce he is re-recording  ‘Thank You for Being a Friend’ by Andrew Gold as the Thank You Day anthem (the theme tune to ‘The Golden Girls’) Tony says, “I continue to tour as I’ve found music improves the symptoms associated with my dementia, so every time I go on stage and work it’s helping me. It’s important for me to stay positive and try not to let dementia affect my life but I still need some ..read more

Grace Meadows has been with The Utley Foundation for almost five years, during which time she oversaw the establishment and development of the Music for Dementia campaign, creating real momentum and action around the power of music for people living with dementia and making it an integral part of care. This has involved working closely with Lauren Laverne, Vicky McClure and Our Dementia Choir. Alongside this, accepting a £500,000 donation from Sir Tom Hunter on BBC Breakfast and working with Paul and Nick Harvey on ‘Four Notes’. In addition, she has worked with DCMS and DHSC to have music talk ..read more

The Music for Dementia campaign has been leading the charge when it comes to highlighting the importance of music for health and wellbeing, and we’re excited to announce that we’re central to a hugely exciting campaign to get communities connected through music. Sunday July 2nd is the UK’s third annual Thank You Day, which over the last two years has strengthened bonds to create kinder communities by bringing over 15 million people together. This year’s Thank You Day will bring the nation together to show their appreciation of the UK’s unsung heroes by giving the gift of music to family, frien ..read more

Music for Dementia has been leading the charge when it comes to highlighting the importance of music for health and wellbeing and now we’re central to a hugely exciting and uplifting campaign that everyone can join in with. Thank You Day on Sunday 2 July will bring the nation together to show their appreciation of one another – and what better way to do this than by giving the gift of music.  Music brings us together like nothing else, and so is a vital part of Thank You Day 2023 [hyperlink] thankyouday.org.uk. See what we did with music last year click here This year, we’re making a spec ..read more

Power of Music Fund: Dementia Choirs and Singing Groups Are you in a choir or singing group that is a lifeline for someone living with dementia and their carers? We are delighted to announce that we have partnered with The Utley Foundation to offer 100 grants of £1,000 each to eligible choirs and singing groups. Find out how to apply  The new fund is a response to last year’s Power of Music report, which called for investment in music programmes for health and wellbeing, among other recommendations. It is also inspired by the ‘Our Dementia Choir’ documentary, which features the creation ..read more

This week, our Campaign Director, Grace Meadows, has been in the press endorsing a brilliant new dementia management tool called Vera. Vera is an intuitive app that analyses the age of the person living with dementia, where they grew up, and how they react to certain music. It then uses these criteria to autonomously curate the right songs, at the right times, to effectively manage the Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD). Vera, which has just launched on Apple’s AppStore, uses the world’s largest music catalogue from Universal Music Group, including the most most diverse ..read more

Care homes launch dementia music therapy programme to support residents living with dementia and upskill carers in their understanding of the power of music 75% of older people find joy in music 84% of older people say music helps to bring back fond memories 78% of the public call for greater access to dementia music therapy 74% of the public would want music therapy if they developed dementia themselves Care provider Anchor launches dementia music therapy research project with Anglia Ruskin University’s Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research, with funding from The Utley Foundation An ..read more

  Today we are shining a light on some of the inspiring organisations that we at Music for Dementia have and are working with and alongside. Back in 2020, Music for Dementia received a donation that enabled us to support organisations through the pandemic that were providing a music for dementia offer or service. We distributed a total of £610,599 to organisations all over the UK through our Paul and Nick Harvey Fund. To see more of who we were able to support, please click here. We have seen the power of music in full swing from all of the grantees of the Paul and Nick fund and we’re lo ..read more