Volunteer musicians bring live music to hospital patients

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Aging Untold) — A group of volunteer musicians is bringing live music directly to hospital rooms, an effort that organizers say lifts the spirits of patients, families and staff. Alex King goes room to room at TriStar Centennial in Nashville and performs for patients. Five years ago, she and patient Penn Pennington performed a duet that went viral while he was being treated for leukemia. Doctor cites calming effect Dr. Rhea Rogers, a board-certified physician, said music can help patients cope in the moment. “Anytime you can create a calm within the body it creates a sense of being able to heal and it actually really does affect the different hormones that you have, so those feel-good hormones, the dopamine and all that, and very calming.” She said the goal is to reduce the amount of stress that the person has. “They’re already going through a lot and so this gives their self a way to focus on something else that’s very tranquil and calming,” Rogers said. Musicians on