Episode 1: Singing as Part of Stroke Recovery

Anchor link (audio only): https://anchor.fm/scotlands-sfhn/episodes/Season-2–Episode-1-Singing-and-Stroke-Recovery-e1vrr6k

Show Notes

On Season 2, Episode 1, we welcome Professor Mark Tarrant, from the University of Exeter and Mary Raunikar Page, a music therapist who was involved with a singing and stroke recovery group in Aberdeenshire and who now works within neurorehab units in carehomes in Durham.

The show is presented by Brianna Robertson-Kirkland, who is Principal Investigator of the Network.

The shows producer and editor is Sophie Boyd.

Below, we have provided links to resources mentioned on the episode.

More details about the Network

Website: https://portal.rcs.ac.uk/scotland-singing-for-health-network/

Get in touch: singing-for-health@rcs.ac.uk

Twitter: @ScotSingHealth

Key links

Mark Tarrant’s research project: https://www.stroke.org.uk/research/can-singing-group-help-improve-wellbeing-people-post-stroke-aphasia.

Stroke Association: https://www.stroke.org.uk/.

Grampian Stroke Club: https://www.grampianstrokeclub.com/music-therapy.

Mary Raunikar Page’s video on Project S I N G (Project Stroke In Nhs Grampian): https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=677874706748667.

Foos Yer Doos Sing Song Club: https://www.chss.org.uk/group/foos-yer-doos-sing-song-club/.

Open Access Research on Singing and Aphesia

Johnson, J. K. (2015) Some early cases of aphasia and the capacity to sing. Progress in Brain Research. 26. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pbr.2014.11.004.

Stahl B and Kotz SA (2014) Facing the music: three issues in current research on singing and aphasia. Front. Psychol. 5:1033. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01033.

Tarrant M, Carter M, Dean SG, et al. (2021) Singing for people with aphasia (SPA): results of a pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial of a group singing intervention investigating acceptability and feasibility. BMJ Open 11:e040544. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040544.

Tarrant M, Lamont RA, Carter M, Dean SG, Spicer S, Sanders A, Calitri R. (2021) Measurement of Shared Social Identity in Singing Groups for People With Aphasia. Front Psychol. 17;12:669899. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.669899. PMID: 34220642; PMCID: PMC8248786.

There is also restricted-access research in this area, that we have listed below:

Tamplin, Jeanette et al. (2013) ‘“Stroke a Chord”: The Effect of Singing in a Community Choir on Mood and Social Engagement for People Living with Aphasia Following a Stroke’. NeuroRehabilitation 32: 4. 929 – 941. doi: 10.3233/NRE-130916.

Thaut, M. Hoemberg, V. (eds.) (2016) Handbook of Neurologic Music Therapy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Thaut, M. (2013) Rhythm, Music, and the Brain: Scientific Foundations and Clinical Applications. New York, London; Routledge.

Sarah J. Wilson, Kate Parsons, David C. Reutens (2006) Preserved Singing in Aphasia: A Case Study of the Efficacy of Melodic Intonation Therapy. Music Perception 24:1, pp.23–36. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/mp.2006.24.1.23.

Music featured in the episode:

Intro music: Free Over the Fields (ID 1622) by Lobo Loco (licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License)

Outro music: Famba Naye sung by the Dennistoun Cheyne Gang, recorded by Sophie Boyd. Famba Naye is a folk song that comes from Zimbabwe and is sung in the Shona language.  “Famba Naye” means “Stay Well, Go Well” in Shona. As the song is about parting, it is a popular song to be sung at funerals, though it can also be sung in other contexts.