National Centre for Early Music

National Centre for Early Music say:

In June 2019, the NCEM were able to work in conjunction with Professor Stephen Clift, Professor of Arts and Health at the Sidney De Haan Research Centre, singer Vivien Ellis, also affiliated with the Sidney De Haan Research Centre and Dr Nicola Gill, Director of the York GP training scheme, to provide two events centred upon Arts, Health and Wellbeing.

The first event, was a free public event as part of the Festival of Ideas, to talk to the York community about social prescribing and how they can actively improve their health and wellbeing through the arts and, importantly, where they can find it. The second was a GP training day, where York GPs were made aware of arts for health and wellbeing, what is available locally, and how they and their patients can benefit. Part of the day involved the GPs having hands-on experience of music, dance and visual art, and had an opportunity to meet people who are engaged in arts for wellbeing in York.

The grant enabled us to provide practical singing workshops for participants of both groups, giving them the opportunity to experience the benefits of singing, first hand. In addition to this, we were able to document our findings through video, photography and evaluation, that was then shared with our trainee GPs, key individuals within the NHS and Arts and Cultural organisations in the UK, to share good practice and to put York firmly on the map for its successful way of working.

The National Centre for Early Music (NCEM) is the national advocate of early music in England and a centre of excellence for music-making in the City of York.  Located in the restored medieval church of St Margaret’s, the NCEM hosts three festivals of early music in Yorkshire, a year-round programme of folk, jazz, early music and world music concerts supported by a significant creative learning programme, of which health and wellbeing has become a key area of engagement.