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This page: It's Not That Easy; The Big Reward; How to Participate
It's Not That Easy
'I must play Backstreet Boys 20 times a day when I'm there, and I'd do it 100 times if my singing and strumming is going to make these kids happy.'
Bebe Farber, a musician on call, plays for pediatric patients at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. |
Before their first MOC performance, musicians and guides are required to undergo orientation. MOC program director Elisabeth Wolfe said the training includes discussion of the emotional reactions they might experience upon seeing seriously ill and dying patients. They're told of MOC's monthly "decompression sessions," a support group environment in which guides and performers can discuss their feelings. Sometimes they swap cover tunes they've learned for their young audiences.
Orientation, held at the hospital, includes discussion of practical concerns such as how to handle the rare emergency, confidentiality issues, and the proper hand washing method to avoid introducing undesirable germs to sterile environments. One rule is that performers must not interfere with the hospital's routine or a patient's comfort.
"What do you do if a kid starts throwing up? Artists are taught that the show must go on," Solomon explained. "Well, guess what? The show doesn't always have to go on."
"One of the things we discovered," Solomon said, "is that it's so great when a patient says 'no' because that's the only time during that day the patient has control over anything that happens to them." But no doesn't always mean no, they've found. From speaking with clown caregivers, Solomon and Tiwary learned that some patients are simply afraid or shy, and that it's sometimes good to non-aggressively "engage a patient a little bit."
The Big Reward
Kiyosh Monsef, a non-performing guitarist who was thrust into service because of a last-minute cancellation, has since taken every opportunity he can to play for patients. "The experience is all about making some kind of connection with the children and their families," he said. "I can only imagine how monotonous a day in the hospital might be, and I've had this feeling just walking into some rooms of everyone taking that deep breath that they had been wanting to take all day long, not because I'm any amazing stage presence, but because there isn't always an outlet where they can put aside all the heavy stuff that's on their minds and just relax. "It's rewarding to know that I can, through music, lift a little bit of that load -- if only for a few minutes."
Another artist, Jason Stanley, told the New York Times he's not always fond of the song requests, but that's not the point. "I must play Backstreet Boys 20 times a day when I'm there," he said, "and I'd do it 100 times if my singing and strumming is going to make these kids happy."
"The air changes in the room," Solomon said. Even if it slips back into gloom, "for an hour there's been a real, palpable change in their spirits." Added Tiwary, "It has nothing to do with who you are, how you look, who wrote the song ... if you can make music, there's a patient who's day you can brighten." Solomon, who calls MOC "the most meaningful and important thing I have ever done," now has an even larger goal. "Every hospital in the world will have this program before I die if I can help it," he said. There's every reason to believe he'll succeed.
How to Participate
MOC has not yet expanded beyond the New York area, but invites any interested New York resident or visitor to contact the organization about participating as a guide, performer, instructor, or in some other volunteer capacity. Contributions may take many other forms, however -- in addition to cash, of course. MOC is attempting to establish in-hospital multimedia libraries and is seeking donations of CDs, videos, DVDs, audio books, video games, players for various media formats (including portable CD players), music-related books, magazines and videos, and instruments in child and adult sizes. Musicians might also consider donating songs for compilation CDs or concert tickets for auctioning or use by patients and their families. The site also is offering holiday cards for sale at www.musiciansoncall.org. Purchases are tax-deductible.
For more information, visit MOC's Web site or call 212-259-0717
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Introduction
It's Not That Easy; The Big Reward; How to Participate
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