Name
The “Decade of Healthy Ageing”: Utilizing PERMA wellbeing model to empower older populations through singing
Date & Time
Monday, July 27, 2026, 1:50 PM - 2:20 PM
Description
2021-2030 has been declared the “Decade of Healthy Ageing” by the United Nations in response to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) prediction that between 2020 and 2050 the human population over the age of 60 will have doubled to 2.1 billion, and the number of people over 80 tripling to 426 million (WHO, 2025). Given that we are at the halfway point in the “Decade of Healthy Ageing” music educators who work with older populations have much to ponder and offer considering the musical benefits reported from senior participants involved in music programming (Creech et al., 2013; Lang, 2020; Lang & Beynon, 2020) that can contribute to “Healthy Ageing.” Healthy ageing requires both the addition of meaningful supports to nurture elder-flourishing (WHO, 2020) and the removal of oppressive barriers that can prevent healthy ageing, such as ageism (Butler, 1969; Levy et al., 2022; Ribera-Cosado, 2024). Several researchers have linked these complementary processes to one’s involvement in music, noting that older populations can meaningfully engage in music given the proper conditions and considerations (Creech & Enright, 2025; Hartogh, 2016; Lang, 2020), and that singing particularly is an accessible form of music making (Cohen, 2021). Based on findings from a longitudinal research study, Intergenerational Choral Connections, this paper discusses how music facilitators can ensure that both factors of meaningful supports and barrier removal are part of their practice and integral to the participant experience. The authors suggest that community choral music programming for the elderly can serve as both a value-added and accessible support to elder-flourishing and a means to dismantle ageism. Best practices in music pedagogies for later life (Creech & Enright, 2025) also known as music geragogy (Hartogh, 2016), elevate senior music programs from the stereotypes of sub-par, “cute,” or “a stepping stone to something better,” and reframe the impact of these programs to agentic, meaningful, and valuing (Creech & Hallam 2015). This paper will examine ways in which Seligman’s PERMA wellbeing model (Seligman, 2011) informs the approach of the Timeless Voices Intergenerational Choir. Resourced by best practices in intergenerational choral singing (Lang & Beynon, 2020) and informed by positive approaches, music educators can facilitate positive change by providing opportunities to foster agency, combat ageism, and contribute to the wellbeing of older populations through the practice of group singing.Keywords: intergenerational singing; musical agency; music wellbeing
Location Name
513C
Full Address
Palais des Congres - Montréal Convention Centre
1001, Place Jean-Paul-Riopelle
Montreal QC H2Z 1H2
Canada
1001, Place Jean-Paul-Riopelle
Montreal QC H2Z 1H2
Canada
Session Type
Paper Presentation
Presenting Author(s)
Jennifer Lang, Andrea Johnson