The Unforgettables are a one-of-a-kind New York chorus — made up of a dozen people with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia and their caregivers.
By Bob DeMarco Alzheimer's Reading Room
Middleman says,
"Anyone who comes to the concert sees that these are people first, not patients.
I don’t have the hubris to say I have slowed down the course of the illness. That would need a formal study I would like to do. But I feel this kind of social and brain stimulation is a way of avoiding excess disability.”
People with dementia, she added, become more alert, more cooperative and more engaged."
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As I read the article about the Unforgetables I was reminded of how Dotty would often start belting out a song I never heard.
Like the time she started singing A Ghost of a Chance right along with the character Antoine (Wendell Pierce) on the HBO hit show Treme.
A Ghost of a Chance was written in 1932. It was first sung and made famous by Billie Holiday. Later it was modernized and re-recorded by Frank Sinatra.
I can still remember the feelings of exhilaration and happiness when Dotty started singing.
To read more about the Unfortgetable go here - Alzheimer's sufferers and caregivers form chorus and get ready for Manhattan holiday concert.
Does music make dementia patients happier and more engaging?
Here is Dotty at age 95.
Does she look happy?
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Bob DeMarco is the Founder of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The ARR knowledge base contains more than 3,811 articles with more than 306,100 links on the Internet. Bob lives in Delray Beach, FL.
Original content Bob DeMarco, the Alzheimer's Reading Room
