Zen Habits Podcast

S2 Bonus - Linda McIntyre on Music, Healing, and Community

Apr 10, 2024

01:02:10

At the heart of every challenge lies the potential for innovation, unity, and profound personal growth. Music, with its boundless capacity to express, heal, and unite, offers a unique vantage point on life's challenges.

This week I have the privilege to be joined by Linda McIntyre, a composer, conductor, and pioneer at the forefront of using music as a transformative force to bring light to the shadows of Parkinson's disease. Her work with the New Voice Choir not only showcases the transformative power of music but also the strength found in community and shared experiences.

In this episode, we uncover the layers of Linda's mission, diving into the relationship between music and wellness, the communal strength born from shared vulnerability, and the transformative journey of turning adversity into art. We explore the nuances of creating a safe, nurturing space where music serves as both a bridge and a destination, inviting us to consider the broader implications of artistic expression as a form of therapy and celebration.

Join us as we tune into the melodies of resilience, exploring how creativity, when fueled by love and resilience, can transcend personal challenges, and inspire collective healing and joy.

Topics Covered

The interplay of music and healing in Parkinson's management
Building community and support through choir participation
Harnessing personal challenges as fuel for creative expression
The transformative journey from individual struggle to collective strength
The role of creativity in enhancing physical and mental well-being
Adapting artistic practices for inclusivity and accessibility
The importance and value of routine in sustaining creative projects
Navigating the challenges of leadership and inspiration in therapeutic settings
Music as a bridge between personal experience and communal healing
The impact of collaborative art on overcoming societal stigmas

Transcript

You can find the transcript on the episode's web page by clicking here.

Linda's Bio & Resources

Linda is an award-winning composer, arranger, teacher, director, & performer – just an all-round muso, really! More recently, her PhD candidature has been added to the mix with the aim of producing a portfolio of new music based on a narrative of lived trauma.

As a composer with Parkinson’s, Linda is in a unique position to record a case study within her PhD, evaluating the impacts of Parkinson’s disease on her deepest levels of mathematical creativity across a period of years. Some surprising reverse developments have already come to light within this process!

She is the co-founder & musical director of New Voice Choir (NVC), a group that celebrates people with Parkinson’s and their supporters.

The combining of music composition with Parkinson’s, teaching, and the uplifting NVC community has become an abiding passion for Linda.