Music & Wellness

 

 

Providing Healing Through Music

Under the leadership of former Music Director Lucas Richman, who is nationally acclaimed for his work in this field, the KSO has successfully established an award-winning Music & Wellness program.

Musicians plating in waiting area of hospital

Mission

The mission of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra’s Music & Wellness program is to provide live musical performances that enhance the healing process and benefit patients, visitors and staff in healthcare settings.

Music Therapist

The KSO employs board-certified Music Therapist Alana Dellatan Seaton to work with musicians as part of the award-winning Music & Wellness program. This part-time position continues in 2019-2020, supported [in part] by a generous grant from the American Orchestras’ Futures Fund, a program of the League of American Orchestras made possible by funding from the Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation. The KSO was one of only twenty-one orchestras from across the United States to receive this grant. In addition to supporting the KSO’s music therapist position, the grant helps the program expand to new areas of health care and supports quantitative research on live music in healthcare settings.

Violinist playing music for baby in hospital

The Power Of Music

The power of music extends beyond the concert hall and touches our daily lives in whatever we do. One of our missions at the KSO is to acknowledge and develop our musical connections throughout the community. We already have in place a commitment to bring music education to children throughout East Tennessee. Now we are turning our attention to the healthcare community.

Healthy Collaborations

The KSO has set up collaborations between healthcare providers and musicians in order to fully nurture, develop, and utilize the healing power of music. Currently, KSO string quartets perform at UT Medical Center and Covenant Healthcare facilities for patients while they are receiving treatment and in waiting rooms for families of patients, as well as for members of the Cancer Support Community. We continually look for possibilities to incorporate our musicians into arts and medicine programs offered in other healthcare facilities in our area.  We know that establishing these partnerships has enhanced the lives of patients as they go through the process of diagnosis, treatment, and recovery within a medical setting.

Training

KSO musicians working in the Music & Wellness program have completed training through the Music for Healing and Transition Program. Three of the KSO Music & Wellness musicians  Certified Music Practitioners recognized by the National Standards Board for Therapeutic Musicians.

The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra’s Sean Claire is one of five orchestra musicians from across the United States to receive a 2021 Ford Musician Award for Excellence in Community Service from the League of American Orchestras.  The program, made possible by Ford Motor Company Fund, celebrates orchestra musicians and the inspirational work they do in their communities. Eunsoon Lee-Corliss received a 2017 Ford Musician Award for Excellence in Community Service from the League of American Orchestras.  Both Claire and Corliss were chosen for their exceptional work in the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra’s Music & Wellness program.

Spirits Uplifted

It is acknowledged by those involved in these programs that incorporating music into the healing process uplifts the spirit of the patients and by doing so accelerates the recovery period.

Groups Affiliated With KSO’s Music & Wellness Program

Other Music & Wellness-Related Websites:

For more information about the KSO Music & Wellness program, please contact the Director of Education & Community Partnerships.

Sponsors: