Special Feature The Use of Songwriting with Patients Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease

ABSTRACT: Songwriting presupposes a ” intact intellectual appa ratus capable of thinking and remembering as well as the capacity far creativity, all of which are typically absent in Alzheimer’r patients. Although the association of rang/poetry writing with Alzheimer’s parents seems to be a contradiction, this paper illustrates that, bared on the preservation of memory for tunes and melodies, patients were able to write songs and poetry when assisted by appropriate stimuli and provided encouragement. The activity of songwriting described in this paper not only provided pleasure to the participants but also improved group cohesion and social interaction. Musical activities for patients with dementia are often lim ited to singing, listening to music and instrument playing. Pollack & Namazi (1392) used preferred musical activities (sing ing, moving, or dancing and instrument playing) to improve the patients ’ social behavior. Olderog & Smith (1989) use