Music on the Move returns to the LGH | Video

Musicians Karlin Love on guitar and Juen Vanhand on violin. Picture: Paul Scambler, The Examiner

December 2023

After a three-year hiatus and for the first time since the arrival of COVID-19, live music is back at the Launceston General Hospital.

In October patients and staff were treated to the return or ‘Music on the Move’ – an initiative of the LGH Historical, Visual and Performing Arts Committee.

The program is part of the committee's approach to art and healing and is aimed at helping people feel more connected to the world around them.

 LGH Historical, Visual and Performing Arts Committee Chairwoman Deanna Ellis said it was wonderful to see the program return to the hospital, led by Karlin Love on guitar and Juen Vanhand on violin.

“Background music in hospital settings increasingly is being recognised to be beneficial for staff, patients, and visitors by providing a calm, soothing environment which assists in improving mood and sense of well-being,” Deanna said.

“Karlin and Juen commenced playing on Level 3 and it was here that they had their first ‘audience’ a young teenager.

“As she walked along the corridor with her carers, she decided she wished to sit and listen. The smile on her face and her interaction with the musicians was such a special moment that we shared with her and her carers.”

Music on the Move will be provided monthly by a dedicated group of local musicians for the next eighteen months.