Music as therapy – when words are not enough.

Jeni Melia and Sarah Russell are Directors of Bedford’s Tibbs Dementia Foundation. Since 2008 they have run Music 4 Memory (M4M), a programme of open therapeutic music groups for people affected by Dementia in Bedford, supported by Harpur Trust, Bedford Borough and Friends of M4M.

As an early music soprano Jeni has enjoyed 10 years recording and performing renaissance lute and folk songs for CD, radio and concerts across the UK and Europe. (www.magnatune.com) A qualified, registered Music Therapist, Jeni is committed to using music to enhance the lives of others.

Sarah Russell has extensive working knowledge of dementia with over 12 years experience in the field. Sarah has worked alongside Jeni to help establish Music 4 Memory and to help ensure its continued success and development.

Jeni and Sarah will join us to describe how the use of music using therapeutic principles has the power to support family relationships, mental health, community awareness and connectedness.

Expect to experience first hand how exposure to music can enhance thinking, personal motivation, communication and well-being. Warning: beware a worm in your ear and a spring in your step!