We are excited to present our groundbreaking research on the quality of life of older adult clients of U.S. senior centers through the lens of music participation. Our new book, Music, Senior Centers, and Quality of Life (2023), provides a unique perspective on the state of musical activities in senior centers before and during the pandemic, based on our research conducted in senior centers across six states. We feature stories from older adults themselves and insights from senior center activity leaders, management, and staff. Also documented is the adjustment process that senior centers underwent during the pandemic. We conclude by emphasizing the critical role that music plays in senior centers and offering recommendations for policy makers, school and community music educators, music activity leaders, older adults, caregivers, and service providers to enhance the quality of life of older adults. We are thrilled to share our findings and hope that our research will provide a deeper understanding of the impact of music on the lives of older adults and inspire further exploration. In this blog, we share our personal journeys leading up through this book. It’s not always easy to find information about the paths that authors take; we hope that by sharing our experiences, we can provide a more personal and relatable perspective on our work. We also hope to inspire others to explore their own interests and passions. We are incredibly grateful to our readers who have asked us questions over time, and accordingly, we have gathered some of the most common questions and provided our responses below. We hope you enjoy reading about our individual stories.
Question: What was your educational and/or professional path to becoming a researcher?
Lisa: My path to becoming a researcher began later in life, after earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance and teaching in U.S. public schools for 18+ years. Seeking a refreshed, broader, and deeper perspective on my work, I entered the music education Ph.D. program at the University of South Florida, where I taught four courses and had the good fortune to study with Dr. Victor Fung. My teaching and learning experiences at USF served as a catalyst to explore a new role of researcher and higher education faculty member at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass), where I happily remain today.
Victor: Research has always been an interest of mine since my student days. Even after becoming a faculty member, I keep learning how to do it better to this day. I understand and enjoy the fact that research is an endless endeavor. To me, the pursuit of knowledge through research is everlasting, not only through a lifetime, but also through generations. Coupling research with my background and interest in music makes the journey so much more enjoyable and meaningful.
Question: In particular, what piqued your interest in older adult music participation and quality of life?
Lisa: To supplement our income while I was studying for my Ph.D., my husband accepted a position as music director at a large church in a nearby senior living community. On weekends I accompanied him there and volunteered my time to sing in the choir and play flute in the praise band. I really enjoyed connecting with the older adult music participants there and my interest grew in helping to further all older adults’ enjoyment of, and involvement in, music.
Victor: First, I always respect older people as they have accumulated a lot of life experiences and wisdoms. Second, I feel that older people deserve more in our society, including a better quality of life, because they have contributed so much of their lives in many ways, directly and indirectly. Third, after I moved to Florida in 2004, I noticed that there are more older adults in the community than prior places I have lived. So, I would like to utilize my research skills in music education to help understand their music participation and quality of life. One way I view this line of research is to consider older adults as an overlooked and under-studied “minority culture” in society. Their culture is definitely different from that of the younger generations.
Question: What led you to collaborate on research on this topic?
Lisa: Shortly after joining the UMass music education faculty, I noticed that the NAMM Foundation was launching a new “Sounds of Living” grant initiative to examine the role of active participation in music for children, youth, and adults of all ages. I recalled that Victor had mentioned his interest in someday conducting research on older adult music participation and quality of life. Remembering how much I enjoyed my prior experiences in the senior living community church, I contacted Victor to see if he might be interested in collaborating on such a study. We applied for the NAMM grant, were selected for funding, and our research on this topic was off to a great start, which led to our first book in 2016!
Victor: I am so glad that my collaborator on this line of research, Dr. Lisa Lehmberg, shares a similar research interest with me. Our combined perspectives have helped the research to be better designed and reach deeper insights, which perpetuate more studies. I eagerly anticipate our continuing and forthcoming projects.
Question: What is the most exciting/interesting/rewarding thing to come out of your research on this topic?
Lisa: The most exciting thing is co-authoring and publishing two books with Victor Fung! Perhaps the single most interesting thing, which occurred during data collection for our new book, was visiting with, and hearing about the musical history of, a centenarian senior center client who still participated actively in the center’s choir. There was much to learn about life from that kind and caring gentleman. Overall, the most rewarding thing has to be the intrepid older adults with whom I’ve connected and spent time. It warms my heart to learn about the role of music in their lives.
Victor: As in most research projects, finding out the unknown is one of the most exciting moments. Without the data and the analyses, we could only guess. With the evidence we collected, we can speak with a lot more confidence about the phenomenon in question. Throughout this book project, I learned so much about older adults’ lives in a realistic sense, in this case in the setting of senior centers. Although they tend to be described under one label of “older adults”; in fact, they are extremely diverse among themselves. It is rewarding to enrich my own knowledge and understanding. Furthermore, I look forward to the potential contribution of this work to fields beyond my own, such as aging studies, public health, social work, and other social and scientific areas.
Question: How does your research on this topic affect your own quality of life?
Lisa: It gives me hope regarding growing older and maintaining a good quality of life. It renews and feeds my deep belief that music is for everyone, and the older adults’ stories fulfill me and renew my spirit. Our research also provides evidence to support the ongoing societal effort against ageism.
Victor: The research has helped me to build a sense of fulfillment and selfimprovement, because of my increased understanding in music and older adults’ lives. I feel that I have deeper insights into my own quality of life as I age.
Question: Where do you think/hope your research will take you next?
Lisa: I’d like to explore older adult music participation on an international level. I’m really interested in examining similarities and differences across countries and possibly collaborating with researchers from different parts of the world.
Victor: It would be interesting to take a global view in identifying universal truths about older adults’ musical engagement. This way, we can draw implications for music activities for all generations from a broad humanistic standpoint regardless of locale. There could be potential to transform the way we think about music and music education in everyone’s life, not necessarily limited to designated time and space but integral to aspects of life across the entire community.
Question: Is there anything else you’d like to share with readers?
Lisa: We were inspired by the resilience and adaptability of senior centers, especially during the pandemic, and we wanted to document the impact that music had on the lives of older adults before and during this difficult time. Through our research, we hope to continue to shed light on the importance of music in promoting the quality of life of older adults, and to inspire others to further investigate this important topic.
Victor: It may be time to break boundaries between older adults and non-older adults in terms of music participation, teaching, and learning. This includes seeing life stages as a continuum and interconnected and integral phases, rather than distinctive stages in musical experiences, participation, and learning. Music is an essential component in a balanced life with sustained meanings throughout the entire lifespan.
Music, Senior Centers, and Quality of Life by Lisa J. Lehmberg and C. Victor Fung
Lisa J. Lehmberg is Professor of Music Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA. She holds a PhD degree in music education and has extensive experience as a school music specialist. Her publications include research- and practice-based books, chapters, and articles, including the book Music for Life: Music Participation and Quality...
C. Victor Fung is Professor of Music Education at the University of South Florida, USA. He authored Music for Life: Music Participation and Quality of Life of Senior Citizens (with Lisa J. Lehmberg, 2016) and A Way of Music Education: Classic Chinese Wisdoms (2018). He was a Fulbright researcher in Japan and has given open lectures at over thirty i...
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