Nonprofit Spotlight

Musicians bring the healing power of music

BY ANNA D’AMICO

In a year where health was top priority, musicians in Nashville contributed the best way they knew how — by bringing the healing power of music virtually to thousands of patients, families and caregivers in hospitals through Musicians On Call, a locally-based nonprofit.

The COVID-19 pandemic did not halt its mission. If anything, it made music programs even more accessible. Due to lockdowns and restrictions on hospital visitation, Musicians On Call expanded its Virtual Bedside Performance Program and Music Pharmacy, reaching over 150,000 people virtually in 2020.

This is the highest number for a single year in the organization’s 22-year history.

Musicians On Call was founded in 1999 by Michael Solomon and Vivek Tiwary. Both men lost loved ones to cancer and sought to improve quality of life for cancer patients. This led to their first hospital concert at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

From there, Musicians On Call was born.

In the years since its creation, the organization has provided the power of music to thousands of patients and families in cities around the country.

Musicians On Call was able to adapt easily to telecommunication — they’d been doing it for years. They began offering virtual programs in 2013 for patients in isolation or unable to receive visitors.

“We really wanted to figure out a way to bring music and entertainment and a distraction to those patients, even before the pandemic. So that’s where the virtual programs were born and we were very lucky to have that foundation in place,” said Nicole Rivera, Director of Programs for Musicians On Call.

Using a combination of Zoom, CCTV and eventually YouTube Live, patients were able to tune into programs in their rooms or on their own devices, making live music more accessible than ever.

Having the virtual programming also helped build community across the country, Rivera said.

“On one individual show, we could have someone from New York and LA and Nashville and Chicago and all over the country join, and we would have volunteers from all over the country too, so they could be in different areas. It’s been really interesting to add community across the board,” said Rivera.

Sam Hatmaker is a volunteer musician who started with Musicians On Call in early 2020, as the organization was making its transition to virtual-only programming. So far, she has only participated virtually, but feels she’s gotten the full benefit of volunteering.

“It’s a different experience for sure, but it’s actually cool that I came in around this time and this was all I knew — this is my only experience with it so far,” Hatmaker said. “I got pretty used to it and I felt like it was a way to still stay connected with people. So for me, it still feels very personal.”

Hatmaker works primarily with pediatric patients, who can send questions and song requests to volunteer musicians through their contacts at the hospitals. She says this communication keeps the programs interactive and personal, as if they were in the room together.

Libby Werner, who began as a volunteer guide in summer of 2019, said her transition to virtual programs was smooth and the organization did a great job of keeping volunteers engaged and connected throughout the process.

“For me, the experience of staying involved was the same. It was still just signing up for sessions, but instead of getting in my car and driving to Vanderbilt, I just sat behind my computer,” said Werner.

Although it may still be a while until Musicians On Call are able to return to in-person programming, they will continue to use the newly accessible technology to get into the hands of patients and spread the healing power of music.