Aging & Social Change: Eleventh Interdisciplinary Conference

Abstract

Although there is strong evidence that musicking offers multiple benefits for older adults, little attention has been paid to the potential for a digital technologies to support creative connection among frail elders. Therefore, this paper explores the ways in which musicking with digital motion sensor technology fostered connection and creativity amongst later-life participants living in residential care. Research in this area has significance for the development of best practices in supporting creative later life, and in contributing to our understanding of how barriers to music-making can be mitigated by the use of digital technologies. Positioned within the interdisciplinary field of music education, music therapy, and gerontechnology, a participatory action research approach was undertaken in two case study sites. Participants were facilitated in small groups in a series of 8 weekly 45-minute workshops, with the aim of creating and improvising using the Soundbeam. The workshop protocol focused on relationship building, placing the needs and capacities of the participants at the centre of the practice, defining creative goals, and developing a sense of mastery and autonomy. Data were collected via detailed field notes, participant feedback, and video observations. Overall, we found multiple instances of deep personal connection among participants, as well as micro-moments of ‘mini-c’ creativity mediated by the Soundbeam. This research contributes to a growing body of knowledge concerned with how the benefits of later-life musicking may be maximised, making a particularly innovative contribution with its focus on the Fourth Age.