Liverpool Philharmonic celebrates 15th anniversary of music and health programme

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra this month celebrates 15 years of its music and health programme. To celebrate the anniversary, the programme will host performances in partner hospitals as well as publishing a report evaluating the impact of the programme across a decade and a half of engagement.

Music and Health provides participants and NHS professionals with free musical activities, concerts and rehearsal visits to hear the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall. The orchestra’s engagement programme now works across 27 wards in four partner NHS trusts and has grown from its first partnership in 2008 with Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust. 

Michael Crilly, the Trust’s director of social health & community inclusion, said: ‘Those of us connected to this partnership between Mersey Care and the Philharmonic over the last decade have witnessed first-hand the phenomenal impact that music has had upon the recovery journey of literally thousands of service users across all parts of our organisation… Mersey Care has remained committed to this partnership year on year not simply because it is merely a ‘nice’ thing to do but because we have successively seen the programmes deliver very real and transformative recovery and well-being outcomes.’

The anniversary follows the formation of a new partnership, announced in May of this year, with the Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust. The Music and Health programme also sees Liverpool Philharmonic work with the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust as well as with Improving Me, a consortium of 27 NHS organisations.

Throughout its 15-year history, the programme has supported 18,000 patients and participants with a total of 15,000 hours of music-making across 50 health, social care and community settings. Throughout the month the Music and Health programme will host performances in hospitals for family and friends of ward participants led by the orchestra’s musicians. On 12 and 13 October, programme participants will also give a performance of work devised by past and current participants.

Anniversary celebrations will continue into next month with the publication of a report evaluating the impact of the programme on the general health and wellbeing of hospital patients and people in the community. The report is based on research conducted across 2022 and 2023 by the University of Liverpool’s Professor Josie Billington PhD, Dr Jaqueline Waldock PhD and Dr Melissa Chapple PhD, as well as consultation with Royal College of Music Professor Rosie Perkins FHEA, FRSPH, HonRCM, and research by University of Sunderland visiting Professor Susanne Burns.