Music and Mind: Renée Fleming

A PUBLIC PANEL DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ARTS AND HEALTH

The powerful benefits of the arts for human health are becoming clearer every day. In addition to using music to better understand the complex functioning of the brain, researchers have found music and art therapies effective tools in addressing the effects of an ever-widening array of conditions. As Artistic Advisor to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, renowned soprano Renée Fleming—recently named World Health Organization Goodwill Ambassador for Arts and Health—has spearheaded collaborations to further this work, including initiatives with the Kennedy Center, the National Institutes of Health, and National Endowment for the Arts. For this free public presentation of Music & Mind, Fleming is joined by local experts for a panel discussion and Q&A to discuss exciting developments in this growing field.

Renée will also preview her new anthology, Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, to be published by Viking Penguin on April 9, 2024. The book features chapters from leading scientists, artists, creative arts therapists, educators, and healthcare providers about the powerful impacts of music and the arts on health and the human experience.

Panelists:

Nilufer Ertekin-Taner, M.D., Ph.D., is a neurogeneticist focused on the complex genetics of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative diseases. She is also a practicing board-certified neurologist with subspecialty training in behavioral neurology, and works at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. Dr. Ertekin-Taner’s laboratory aims to discover and characterize the genetic factors that influence the risk of AD and other neurodegenerative diseases, such as progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), through the use of combined genomic, transcriptomic and epigenetic approaches. Further, her laboratory utilizes biological traits such as cognition to study the downstream effects of genetic factors.

Jamey Espina, MA, LPC, is Vice President, Development & Community Services at Hospice Savannah. Jamey is responsible for the leadership of Hospice Savannah’s Foundation and of several of the programs it supports, including the Full Circle Grief and Loss Center; the Edel EAP (Employment Assistance Program); the organization’s Marketing efforts; and the Complementary Therapies, also known as the Healing Arts of massage therapy, music therapy, and story keeping.

Zakir Hussain is considered one of the most pre-eminent classical tabla virtuosos and has elevated the status of the instrument in India and around the world. He won three Grammy Awards this year. He began touring at twelve and quickly became a favorite accompanist for India’s greatest musicians and dancers. He’s been at the helm of many genre-defying collaborations including Shakti, Masters of Percussion, Diga, Planet Drum and Tabla Beat Science. He has also been a professor at Princeton University, Stanford University, the University of Washington, and at UC Berkeley in the prestigious post of Regents Lecturer.

Presented in collaboration with Savannah Cultural Arts Center.