Keeping the Beat

Keeping the Beat – Healthy Aging Through Amateur Chamber Music Playing
by Ada P. Kahn, Ph.D.
Foreward by Don Campbell, author of The Mozart Effect
Softcover book; 259 pages

Back Cover:
      Dust off your clarinet! You can express yourself and improve your health through music. Ada Kahn's Keeping the Beat encourages older amateur musicians who play violins, cellos, flutes, and recorders to make joyful sounds with others.
      Throughout Keeping the Beat, Kahn emphasizes the social aspects of music making. Many older adults face major changes, including the loss of loved ones or retirement and relocation. Musical participation sparks new friendships based on a common interest – chamber music, the music of friends. 
      OASIS has enriched the lives of mature adults through education, health promotion, and volunteerism in 26 cities since 1982. Our national membership of over 350,000 mature adults seek opportunities for personal growth, expression, and lifelong learning. One project, the Center for Music, has demonstrated benefits for St. Louis OASIS members that include socialization, development of musical skills, and increased self-confidence. This collaboration between OASIS, the Saint Louis Symphony Community Music School, and the Washington University School of Medicine explores the relationship between music and healthy aging.
      Our work involves development of creative expression, and so does Keeping the Beat. In the words of older amateur players and professional musicians who coach them, Kahn describes how creative expression – practice, rehearsal, and performance – is exhilarating for older persons, even as the cope with sensory changes. Interviewees speak of creativity and spirituality as well as enhanced listening and personal communication skills. Enjoy the humor expressed by older players in Keeping the Beat as they adapt to life's changes. 
– Marylen Mann, President
The OASIS Institute, St. Louis, Missouri