For people living with dementia, the world can sometimes feel confusing and isolating. Yet, through the gentle power of music therapy, a door often remains open—connecting them to memories, emotions, and the people around them. At Hovi Care, we’ve witnessed how music can transform moments of disconnection into beautiful instances of engagement and joy. Music therapy doesn’t require complex medical equipment or invasive procedures; instead, it harnesses the natural human connection to melody and rhythm that remains intact even as other cognitive functions decline. This preservation of musical appreciation is why it’s such a valuable therapeutic approach in our Senior Living and Care programmes, particularly at our Hovi Club day care centres where we focus on creating meaningful daily experiences.
1: Triggering Long-Term Memory Recall
Music’s remarkable ability to unlock long-term memories makes it invaluable in dementia care. Even when other memories fade, musical memories often remain accessible, as they’re stored in brain regions that remain relatively preserved. Familiar songs from a person’s formative years can suddenly unlock detailed recollections of past events, people, and places that seemed lost.
At Hovi Care, we carefully curate playlists featuring music from our residents’ youth and cultural background. We’ve witnessed people who struggle to remember what they had for breakfast suddenly recall detailed stories from their young adulthood when hearing a significant song. This phenomenon leverages procedural memory—which remains remarkably intact even as dementia progresses—allowing access to biographical memories through musical pathways.
What makes this aspect of music therapy particularly powerful is its ability to temporarily restore a sense of identity and personal history. These moments of remembering provide cognitive stimulation while reinforcing Hovi Care’s commitment to honoring each individual’s unique life story and preserving their sense of self through personalized care approaches.
2: Reducing Anxiety and Agitation
For many people with dementia, feelings of anxiety, restlessness, and agitation can be daily challenges. Music offers a gentle, non-pharmacological intervention that can significantly reduce these distressing symptoms. The rhythmic and predictable nature of music provides a soothing structure that helps calm an overwhelmed nervous system.
Research has documented how appropriate music can decrease cortisol levels (a stress hormone) while increasing production of beneficial neurochemicals like endorphins and oxytocin. At our Hovi Club centres, we strategically use music during potentially stressful times of day or before situations that might trigger anxiety. Soft, slow-tempo compositions often help reduce sundowning symptoms, while familiar melodies create a sense of safety and predictability.
Many families are surprised to see how quickly the right music can transform a moment of distress into calm. This anxiety-reducing property of music aligns perfectly with Hovi Care’s commitment to creating peaceful, supportive environments where residents feel secure. By reducing agitation naturally, music therapy also helps minimize the need for medication interventions, supporting overall wellbeing.
3: Improving Mood and Emotional Wellbeing
Depression and emotional flatness frequently accompany dementia, diminishing quality of life. Music has a unique ability to pierce through emotional numbness, bringing joy, comfort, and a full spectrum of healthy emotional responses. The emotional processing centers of the brain remain responsive to music even in advanced dementia stages.
At Hovi Care, we intentionally incorporate uplifting, joyful music into our programming, similar to how our Green Care experiences connect seniors to nature to evoke positive emotions. When we play personally meaningful songs, we often witness a remarkable transformation—blank expressions become animated, smiles emerge, and emotional engagement returns. These emotional responses represent valuable moments of authentic feeling and connection for individuals who may otherwise experience limited emotional range.
For family members, seeing their loved one experience joy through music offers tremendous comfort and hope. These shared emotional moments strengthen bonds despite the challenges of dementia. Music becomes a reliable source of positive experiences, improving overall mood and creating emotional memories that, while perhaps not consciously recalled, leave lasting impressions of positivity that enhance overall wellbeing.
4: Enhancing Physical Movement and Coordination
Music’s rhythmic qualities naturally stimulate motor function, making it an excellent tool for maintaining physical abilities in people with dementia. The brain’s response to rhythm is so fundamental that even in advanced stages of cognitive decline, the ability to move in time with music often remains. This connection between music and movement provides opportunities for gentle exercise that supports overall physical health.
During movement-based music sessions at our Hovi Club, we observe people who may be hesitant to participate in traditional exercise programs spontaneously tapping their feet, clapping, swaying, or even standing to dance. The natural coupling of music and movement bypasses cognitive barriers, allowing intuitive physical responses that maintain mobility, balance, and coordination.
The physical benefits extend beyond the sessions themselves. Regular musical movement activities help maintain muscle strength, joint flexibility, and circulation—all crucial for preventing complications associated with reduced mobility. These meaningful physical engagements support independence in daily activities and contribute to better sleep quality and appetite. You can learn more about effective physical engagement strategies that complement music therapy in our comprehensive care approach.
5: Facilitating Communication and Expression
As verbal abilities decline with dementia progression, finding alternative channels for self-expression becomes crucial. Music offers a powerful form of communication that doesn’t rely on words or language processing. Even when speech becomes limited or difficult, singing often remains possible because it utilizes different neural pathways than speaking.
At Hovi Care, we’ve witnessed people who rarely speak suddenly begin singing lyrics perfectly, or using melodies to express emotions they can no longer verbalize. We train our staff to recognize these musical forms of communication and respond appropriately, validating the person’s expression and supporting their fundamental need to connect with others and be understood.
Family carers often discover that incorporating music creates new communication channels with their loved ones. A shared song may elicit words, gestures, or emotional responses when direct questions receive no reply. At our Hovi Club day care programme, we guide families in using music as a communication bridge, empowering them to maintain meaningful connections even as traditional conversation becomes challenging. This musical communication approach honors our belief that every person deserves to be heard and understood, regardless of cognitive ability.
Embracing music therapy as part of comprehensive dementia care
Music therapy represents one of the most accessible and joyful approaches to enhancing quality of life for people living with dementia. Its unique ability to reach parts of the brain that remain responsive even in advanced stages makes it an invaluable component of compassionate, person-centred care. At Hovi Care, we’ve integrated music therapy into our comprehensive approach because we’ve witnessed its remarkable capacity to bring moments of connection, expression and joy.
What makes music therapy so aligned with our philosophy is that it honours the whole person—their history, preferences, emotions and remaining abilities—rather than focusing on limitations. It embodies our commitment to treating each person with respect and dignity, creating opportunities for meaningful experiences even as cognitive abilities change.
We encourage families to explore how music might enhance their loved one’s wellbeing, whether through formal therapy sessions at our Hovi Club centres or through simple musical moments at home. How might the songs that have mattered throughout your loved one’s life become a tool for connection and comfort today?
