Intergenerational Choir Participation: Examining the Effects on Voice, Speech, and Quality of Life of Two Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

This research examines the concept of intergenerational choral singing as a behavioral intervention for speech and voice in Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Prior research examining music therapy and group singing protocols has focused exclusively on groups composed of individuals with PD, which are not always accessible depending on location. Therefore, this research asks if participation in a group of mixed age and ability lends itself to physiologic (articulatory, phonatory, respiratory) and perceived quality of life benefits. To address this, two individuals with early-stage idiopathic PD were recruited to participate in an intergenerational choir (IC) conducted by music therapy and education students at the University of Kansas. At three dates, acoustic data regarding frequency, intensity, voice onset time, triangular vowel space area, diadochokinetic rate, maximum phonation duration, and pause number and mean duration were gathered during the completion of structured speech tasks. Perceived quality of life data was obtained through self-perception questionnaires. Results showed inconclusive evidence that once weekly participation in an intergenerational choir for one hour influenced quality of life or physiologic mechanisms in the participants recruited for this study. Slight articulatory improvements were noted, which may be a result of choral singing or a separate confounding variable. Further research in this area is warranted with adjustments to intervention protocol, data collection methods or tasks, or sample size.