A healing song of comfort

At the fourth annual MusicFest@SGH Campus yesterday, (from left) full-time musician Sin Jin How, as well as siblings Joshua Tin Long Yip, nine, and Olivia Tin Yuan Yip, 12, from A Flutey Affair played a few popular Chinese songs like "yue liang dai b
PHOTO: MARCUS TAN FOR THE STRAITS TIMES

At the fourth annual Music Fest@SGH Campus yesterday, full-time musician Sin Jin How, as well as siblings Joshua Tin Long Yip, nine, and Olivia Tin YuanYip, 12, from A Flutey Affair played a few popular Chinese songs like"yue liang dai biao wo de xin" (The Moon Represents My Heart)" by Teresa Teng and movie theme songs from Lord Of The Rings and Les Miserables.

Music therapists have long worked with stroke patients and those with autism, dementia and Parkinson's to help patients calm their anxiety, ease their pain and discomfort, and provide a pleasant diversion during treatment.

The event at Singapore General Hospital(SGH) was an effort to bring the healing sounds of music to an even larger group of patients.

For the first time, six certified therapists joined the line-up of 280 local and international performers to share the joy of music with patients. They performed in eight public spaces around the hospital and in 12 different wards.

The event is presented by Novartis and jointly organised by SGH and Sing'theatre.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 29, 2016, with the headline A healing song of comfort. Subscribe