Well-Being Concerts Series
Presenting Well-Being Concerts program in partnership with Carnegie Hall Weill Music Institute.
https://www.carnegiehall.org/Events/Well-Being-Concerts
Concert combine world-class musical performances with elements of self-care and mindfulness, animated by evidence that music helps people heal and thrive. Each concert creates an immersive, nurturing space in which audiences and performers share in the soul-nourishing benefits of music, create shared experiences, and explore tools for well-being that last long after the performance.
Please contact us to schedule concerts at your organization.
Prospective participants: Resilience 12-20
This program combines world-class musical performances with elements of self-care and mindfulness, animated by evidence that music helps people heal and thrive. Each concert creates an immersive, nurturing space in which audiences and performers share in the soul-nourishing benefits of music, create shared experiences, and explore tools for well-being that last long after the performance.
A substantial body of evidence now demonstrates that the arts can play an important role in promoting health and health equity across the lifespan.
Research shows that music can improve well-being and enhance mood, while also reducing the physical and psychological markers associated with stress, anxiety, and depression.
These findings inspired the development of our inaugural season of concerts.
Our mission to bring the transformative power of music to the widest possible audience, The Well-Being Concert series creates a new platform to evaluate, optimize, and share the joy and benefits of musical engagement with individuals and communities who might not otherwise have access.
The Music
Each concert is co-created through a collaborative process among performers, expert advisors, and an event host. Musicians and host are selected for their ability to resonate with the audience and support well-being.
The Experience
Each Well-Being Concert is unique and yet connected to all other concerts in the series by the intention to explore the transformative power of music and the integration of self- and communal-care practices with performance.
The performances are designed to create an immersive, nurturing space. Audience members recline on floor mats, use cushions or seat on chairs. The audience is on the same level as the performers who are in the center of the space, surrounded by the audience, offering a context for intimate, shared experiences.
Our hope is that these wellness-focused musical experiences will:
• Offer a soul-nourishing new way to benefit from music.
• Use the power of silence and sound to create shared experiences that build community.
• Provide audience members with tools and practices that they can take home with them after the concert experience.
Research/Learning
The Well-Being Concert series is an experimental space and artistic laboratory where individual scholars and teams of scientists across disciplines can partner with Carnegie Hall to ask important questions about the relationship between music and health. We are currently partnering with the Social Interaction Lab at the University of California, Berkeley under the guidance of Professor of Psychology, Dacher Keltner.
Background
“As soon as I walked into the room, I felt my heart rate going down. I felt my breathing coming back. And it just continued throughout the event…when I left, there out on the street, everything was a bit brighter and calmer and nicer.” -Well-Being Concert participant
Carnegie Hall launched a new concert series during the 2022/2023 season to creatively explore the impact live music can have on individual and collective well-being. The Well-Being Concert series offers thoughtfully curated concerts of the highest quality to amplify the social, physical, emotional, and educational benefits of musical performances.
Two out of five American adults report symptoms of anxiety or depression (2) and an overwhelming majority of the public (90%) believes that there is a mental health crisis in this country.
Major depressive disorder is the single greatest source of disability, yet less than 40% of the over half million who have depression report receiving care for it.
At the center of the national crisis is an extreme shortage of behavioral health providers. Over one-third of Americans live in communities where the number of mental health providers cannot meet the population’s needs.
Design and Implementation
The Well-Being Concert series is rooted in over a decade of experience by the Weill Music Institute (WMI) in presenting concerts in diverse and often high stress public spaces. The Audience The series features back-to-back concerts in Weill Music Room, a center-stage experience in Zankel Hall, and off-site venues including St. John the Divine Cathedral in the 24/25 season. Concerts are presented for the general public as well as for specific audience groups including veterans and healthcare workers. Seats are set aside for individuals and community groups with whom WMI has long standing relationships, including New York City workers and those whose lives have been impacted by the justice system.
The Music
Each concert is co-created through a collaborative process among Carnegie Hall curators and staff, performers, expert advisors, and an event host. Musicians and host are selected for their ability to resonate with the audience and support well-being.
The Experience
Each Well-Being Concert is unique and yet connected to all other concerts in the series by the intention to explore the transformative power of music and the integration of self- and communal-care practices with performance. The performances are designed to create an immersive, nurturing space. Audience members recline on floor mats or use cushions. The audience is on the same level as the performers who are in the center of the space, surrounded by the audience, offering a context for intimate, shared experiences. Research/Learning Our hope is that these wellness-focused musical experiences will: • Offer a soul-nourishing new way to benefit from music. • Use the power of silence and sound to create shared experiences that build community. • Provide audience members with tools and practices that they can take home with them after the concert experience. The Well-Being Concert series is an experimental space and artistic laboratory where individual scholars and teams of scientists across disciplines can partner with Carnegie Hall to ask important questions about the relationship between music and health. We are currently partnering with the Social Interaction Lab at the University of California, Berkeley under the guidance of Professor of Psychology, Dacher Keltner.
References:
1. Enact Lab. The Sound of Well-being: Carnegie Hall Well-being Concerts 2023. Unpublished Internal Report: 2023.
2. The White House. President Biden to Announce Strategy to Address Our National Mental Health Crisis, As Part of Unity Agenda in his First State of the Union. 2022 [cited 2023]; Available from: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/03/01/fact-sheet president-biden-to-announce-strategy-to-address-our-national-mental-health-crisis-as-part-of unity-agenda-in-his-first-state-of-the-union/.
3. Lopes L, Kirzinger A, Follow GS, Stokes M, Brodie M. KFF/CNN Mental Health In America Survey. KFF The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news. 2022. https://www.kff.org/report-section/kff-cnn-mental-health-in-america-survey-findings/
4. Muenning, P., Goldsmith, J.A., El-Sayed A.M., Goldmann, E.S., Quan, R., Barracks S., Cheung J., Behavioral Health in New York City: The Burden, Cost, and Return on Investment. Unpublished Raw Data, 2015.
5. USA Facts. Over one-third of Americans live in areas lacking mental health professionals. 2021; Available from: https://usafacts.org/articles/over-one-third-of-americans-live-in-areas-lacking mental-health-professionals/.
6. Fancourt, Daisy & Finn, Saoirse. (2019). What is the evidence on the role of the arts in improving health and well-being? A scoping review. World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe. https://iris.who.int/handle/10665/329834. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
7. Sajnani N, Fietje N. The Jameel Arts & Health Lab in collaboration with the WHO Global Series on the Health Benefits of the Arts. The Lancet. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01959-1.
8. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Music and Health: What You Need To Know. 2022 [cited 2023]; Available from: https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/music-and-health-what-you-need-to-know.