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Welcome to my website!

My name is Joanne Does and I am a musician living in London, Ontario.

In 2001 my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. What followed was a challenging but also rewarding journey as I searched for ways to help my mother cope with her new reality. My lifelong passion for playing guitar and singing led me to discover the power and magic of live music, especially in healthcare.

To enhance my skills as a musician, I was trained in a program called Music For Healing and Transition in 2007, https://www.mhtp.org, in Cleveland, Ohio. It was there that I learned how to make my music therapeutic and soothing for the sick and dying. This training changed the course of my life and continues to do so.

I am now pretty much retired after many happy years of making music with residents in Long Term Care and Adult Day Programs in the form of singalongs, private musical visits, and group songwriting.

“Arts in healthcare” is being increasingly recognized as an important element in “whole person” care. This is an exciting time to be a musician working in healthcare, and I strongly recommend this type of work to musicians looking for a rewarding way to share their talents and their hearts.

Singalong Videos

In March 2020, due to Covid, I could no longer visit my workplaces. I had to reinvent the way that I could reach people with my music. I used Zoom for my singalongs, and I also created a series of singalong videos for the Alzheimer’s Society.

The videos are are available for all to enjoy at no charge. You can find them by going to the “Singalong Videos” tab on this website. I have received kind emails from staff in long term care and day programs that use the videos in their recreation programs. I’ve also heard from individuals living with dementia and caregivers, that sing along with the videos in their own homes. I appreciate your emails very much. Thanks for watching!

With all the challenges we are facing right now, having Joanne Does provide us with her wonderful, live Zoom shows is such a treat! Her amazing voice brings our staff and residents such pleasure and her ability to interact through this media platform is the next best thing to having her right here with us again. Thank you Joanne, for finding a way to continue providing comfort and joy to our residents and staff!” 

~Patricia Godfrey, Coordinator of Programs, Woodingford Lodge, Woodstock, ON