Alive Inside is an award-winning documentary about music’s capacity to reawaken our souls. It explores the positive impacts of music therapy on people living with Alzheimer’s. In one scene, a nursing home worker puts an iPod shuffle on a 90-year-old Alzheimer’s patient who had been uncommunicative. When the man hears his favorite music, he begins to sing and dance.
The scene inspired Emily Keller, a design student at Umeå Institute of Design in Sweden.
“This scenario is very common, with music transforming an individual from being isolated and catatonic to ‘alive inside,'” she said.
After extensive research, Keller wanted to create a music therapy platform with consideration of all of the needs of an Alzheimer’s patient and their families, friends, and caregivers. So she and three other people in her master’s program, Miglė Padegimaitė, Lina Trulsson, and Darja Wendel, built Remind, a digital music player that connects with a smartphone app, during a two-week project.
Music is an incredible experience. It reminds us of important times in our lives and the emotions we associated with those times. According to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, music can be very powerful in sparking memories for people with the disease, even in the late stages. The foundation encourages people to use music through all stages of the disease. For instance, in early stages, dancing and traveling to various venues and concerts; in middle stages, use as background music to enhance their mood; or in late stages, play old collections of favorites and perform sing-alongs.
Read more about this research here.
