Dementia friendly musical show at Farnham Maltings: tickets available now

Tickets are now available to Musical Memories, a dementia friendly concert from local home care providers, Right at Home GF to be held at Farnham Maltings on 23 October at 2pm.

“The concert is open to all but particularly to people with dementia and their families and friends. Tickets are £15 (accompanying carers are free), available from the Maltings’ box office,” says Alastair Shanks, the Managing Director of Right at Home GF.

Mr Shanks explains how people with dementia often respond to music which stimulates their senses, prompting delight as they listen: “I’ve seen how people living with dementia, who may even have stopped engaging with others altogether, respond to music. It is fabulous to see someone who appears to have retreated into themselves, suddenly get up and start dancing or tapping to the rhythm because they are enjoying themselves. We see this at the Singing for the Mind sessions on Mondays at the Maltings and I’m sure we will see it at the Musical Memories show too.

“Music is extremely powerful and intertwined with our emotions: think how strongly certain songs send you back to your teenage years or remind you of particular people. Notice how children respond to music long before they learn speech. Later in life, as some people experience dementia, decision making processes can become more emotionally led. While communication can become increasingly difficult, music often continues to access those parts of your brain closely linked to emotions. Our brains become perhaps more attuned to music.”

At Musical Memories, local harmony ensemble In Accord, will perform songs they hope will resonate with the audience. The show will include well known songs by the Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel as well as familiar tunes such as a James Bond medley, all sung a capella.

Tickets are available online at www.farnhammaltings.com or by calling the Farnham Maltings box office on 01252 745444. The show is expected to last around two hours, includes an interval and is dementia friendly. Refreshments are included in the ticket price.

Right at Home GF provides care in people’s homes, ranging from companionship and help with everyday tasks such as cooking a meal through to specialist, live-in and overnight care. Right at Home GF also runs activities open to the wider community, such as Singing for the Mind, a weekly singing and music session for people living with dementia and their carers. Details are on the Right at Home GF website.