Encore Expands Singing Program for Adults with Alzheimer's

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - July 15, 2021 - PRLog -- Encore Creativity for Older Adults, America's largest choral program for singers 55+, is pleased to announce the expansion of its "Sentimental Journey Singers" (SJS) program, a chorus for individuals with early or beginning moderate Alzheimer's and other memory impairments.

After a successful pilot program in Virginia, Encore will offer a second SJS location in Maryland this fall. Beginning in September, 2021, Encore will offer its SJS programs at the following times and locations:

SJS Strathmore
Mondays - 10:00-11:30 am - beginning September 13
Strathmore Music Center, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD

SJS Fairfax
Wednesdays - 10:00-11:30 am - beginning September 8
Community of Faith UMC, 13224 Franklin Farm Road, Herndon, VA

With 16 Encore Chorales and 6 Encore ROCKS (rock/pop choruses) in the DC/MD/VA and NYC area, serving over 1,250 singers ages 55+, Encore Creativity for Older Adults is perfectly positioned to deliver an excellent choral program for those with beginning or moderate memory impairment. Singers, along with their care partners, will delight in singing familiar and new songs in three-part harmony.

Singers will rehearse familiar music for the holidays, along with classic favorites such as "Happy Together" and "Route 66." Participants will also learn healthy vocal technique skills to strengthen and improve their singing voice and to help them enjoy the thrill of singing in a chorus and the all-important social aspect of choral singing. "Alzheimer's is a very lonely disease, so when these singers come out every week, the social interaction means a lot," said Jeanne Kelly, Founder and Artistic Director of Encore Creativity for Older Adults, an Annapolis, Md.-based nonprofit.

Tuition for 15 weeks of rehearsals is $190 and includes 15 rehearsals under a professional conductor, sheet music, rehearsal CD, and a December concert performance for family and friends that is free and open to the general public. There are no auditions and Encore  hopes that all care partners will also sing. "The experience will offer teamwork, confidence, a lot of fun and incredible joy," said Kelly.

Both the Strathmore and Fairfax SJS programs will be conducted by Dr. Mary Ann East, an Encore conductor who earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Boston University. Dr. East is also the Music Director at Community of Faith Methodist Church in Herndon, Va. and the Co-Founder and Director of the Capital Harmonia Community Women's Chorus.  The Fairfax SJS will be partnering with Insight Memory Care Center in Fairfax, the only adult day care center in the DC/Northern Virginia area, serving those with mild to late-stage memory impairment.

Encore believes that singing is a lifetime journey. Anyone who is interested in the SJS program, or other Encore choral programs, can visit encorecreativity.org to learn more and to register for programs online.