I still love to study at night. I discovered this during my undergraduate years at the University of Toronto. It is peaceful and quiet, no extraneous noise to interfere with concentration or compete for attention. The overnight CBC radio announcer used to keep me company with gentle dialogue and lots of classical music. I didn't know much about orchestral music then and nothing about time epochs like the Renaissance, Baroque or Romantic periods. What I did know was that every now and then, I would feel calmer or more focused when a particular piece was played. I kept a small notebook on the desk and each time I became aware that the music was touching me in some way, I would write out the name of the piece or the composer. The list grew over the years and when it was time to leave Toronto for my first job, I took that list to the city's only classical music store, located in Yorkville, handed it to the salesman and said "more of this please". I walked out with a double record set entitled, The Golden Age of Baroque and went on to wear grooves in the vinyl. I have expanded my repertoire since then, embracing Mozart and Haydn & earlier works as well. All this to say, I attended an all Mozart concert at the NAC recently. Breathless & shivering with joy at times, the music filled every crevice of my being and I left the concert hall believing that music is the greatest of the healing arts.
Violin concerto #5 in A major K219 - Allegro aperto (James Ehnes/Mozart Anniversary Orchestra)
Clarinet concerto in A major K622 - Adagio (Sabine Meyer)
Andante from Piano concerto #21 in C major K467 played by violinist Joshua Bell/ASMF
Why healing? because on the day that marked the concert, two of my patients were imminently dying: I knew when I returned from weekend call at the sister hospital, their beds would be occupied by someone else and the family units I had come to know would have been forever changed.
Symphony #29 in A major K201 - Allegro con spirito (Prague Chamber Orchestra/Sir Charles Mackerras)
Violin concerto #5 in A major K219 - Allegro aperto (James Ehnes/Mozart Anniversary Orchestra)
Clarinet concerto in A major K622 - Adagio (Sabine Meyer)
Andante from Piano concerto #21 in C major K467 played by violinist Joshua Bell/ASMF
Why healing? because on the day that marked the concert, two of my patients were imminently dying: I knew when I returned from weekend call at the sister hospital, their beds would be occupied by someone else and the family units I had come to know would have been forever changed.
Dr. Littlefield, this blog entry was featured in the February 2010 edition of Palliative Care Grand Rounds, hosted this month at the Alive Hospice Blog. For those who have never read PCGR, it's a monthly round-up of compelling blog entries about hospice and palliative care and grief matters.
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As I heard a wise person say once, "You can't care for others if you don't care for yourself first." Music is such a wonderful way to care for oneself. It does such amazing things for hospice patients -- and, as you've shown, hospice physicians!
Thank you for sharing this story and others through PalliativeChronicle!
And thank you for taking the time to comment. Writing is such a solitary act. Posting is like reading aloud to a "crowd", feeling somewhat vulnerable, all the while hoping to connect in some way with those who are listening.
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