Music from the heart: veterans at Perley Health create music from heartbeats

Veterans at Perley Health are creating music literally from the heart, by recording their heartbeats and pairing it with music. CTV’s Peter Szperling reports.

Veterans at Perley Health are creating music literally made from the heart.

The project is called “Rhythms of Remembrance: Co-Creating Veteran Legacies through Musical Heartbeat Recordings.” Through the project, residents record their actual heartbeats, and pair them with music and personal stories to create keepsakes for families.

According to Perley Health, “The initiative captures each resident’s unique life signature: heartbeat, voice, and music, preserving it as a legacy that can be shared across generations.”

“We would like to create a little bit of a legacy of our veterans who have served their life for this country,” says Atul Jaiswal, research lead at Perley Health.

“It’s a good thing to give people as a remembrance of their loved ones,” Gail Fugere, veteran and resident of Perley Health, told CTV News. “I mean, how much more can you give than your heartbeat?”

Fugere says she’s participating in the project by creating a song based on her heartbeat, for her daughter,

“Because I love her,” she says. “And if she had said to me, ‘oh, mom, yeah, give me a break, I don’t want that,’ I wouldn’t do it. But because she showed interest and expressed a desire to have it, I’ve decided I’m going to do it for her because, you can put little things on those that will bring happy memories to whoever listening to it.”

Participants first record their heartbeat with a music therapist and will then spend several sessions creating a unique song or adapting an existing piece combined with their voice.

“We’re going to create a musical composition, using a song of the resident’s choice,” says Patricia Deek, music therapist. “Some residents are composing their own song, and maybe offering words that they want to share with their loved ones or persons of their choosing.”

At first, Fugere says she wasn’t sure about the project, but then the idea grew on her.

“It really grabs you,” she said. “I think at first it didn’t because I thought it’s strange. But then, when you think about it, you realize it’s a nice thing.”

Fugere intends to create her song sometime next month.

Tim Cote, music therapist at Perley Health, says the goal of the project is to allow residents to connect with their families and their own past, and “engage in building a legacy, that they can share through music.”

“It’s a great creative project. It’s a really positive experience throughout,” Cote said.

“Then afterwards, you’re really left with a unique creation.”

“When you do arrive on a song that is really meaningful to an individual, say, especially if they have dementia, it can light up multiple places in their brain,” Deek says. “All of a sudden, the words come. They recognize the song, and their complete being lights up.”

The program is funded by the Government of Ontario.

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