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Basia Solarz, Molly DeShong and Lynn Friedman warm up their voices in the Volunteer Services space of the QEII’s VG site on this October Tuesday afternoon.
They decide who will sing melody, who will sing high, who will sing low. The songs they sing are not related to any religious or spiritual tradition – they are simple, gentle and comforting, and the lyrics are universal, such as: “May only love surround you” and “You are not alone.”
Each Tuesday afternoon at 1 p.m. the Threshold Singers lend their voices as an offering to the patients and staff on the palliative care unit at the VG. After warming up, the group makes their way up to the unit, singing a few lines in the elevator, for no other reason than the music is in them.
Today the unit has fewer patients than usual, but one patient welcomes the trio – this is her third visit by the group during her time on the unit. They start with a song called “Listen with your heart.” She listens intently and as they finish, she says, “Very good. Do you have another one in you?” Next, they sing: “Love is all around you.” The patient asks: “What is this kind of singing called?” Basia responds, “It’s called comfort singing.” Molly and Lynn chime in, “It’s relaxing, restful.” Lynn adds, “Like a lullaby.” They close with a song called “Peace be with you.” As they get up to leave, Basia offers to the patient, “It’s an honour to sing for you.”
Basia and friend Susan Williams co-founded the Nova Scotia Threshold Singers in 2022. It is based on a model that was created by American Kate Mungar in the late 1990s, the seed having been planted when she sang for a friend dying of AIDS in 1990, unsure of what else to offer and discovering it brought comfort to both her friend and herself. All the songs sung by the Threshold Singers were written by members of this original Threshold Choir.
The personal experiences of the Threshold Singers are part of what makes the initiative meaningful. During the pandemic, due to quarantine requirements, Basia was unable to make the trip to Philadelphia to be with her father while he was dying. Instead, she would visit him on video as her brothers held a phone at their father’s bedside. Due to her father’s advanced dementia, Basia’s father was relatively unresponsive when Basia spoke. However, when she sang for him, “He sat up in his bed and reached for the phone.” There was something about her singing that could break through and make a connection when nothing else could. Basia knew she wanted to share this with others.
The Nova Scotia Threshold Singers are made up of eight members currently, with three singers participating each week. One of the three acts as the group’s “anchor” each week, leading the group and being the primary person to speak with the patient. The group checks in with one another both before and after the singing to help one another prepare for and process the experience.
Erin Fair, volunteer resources consultant, said, “Adding the Threshold Singers to our roster of beloved Palliative Care volunteers has been one of the best decisions I could have made. Music is such an important component of therapy that is often lacking in healthcare environments. To grow the volunteer program on the Palliative Care Unit has been so enriching and rewarding for everyone involved. Plus, it helps that they are all such lovely humans who have such big hearts.”
Molly admits she was unsure when she first started with the group, how patients and staff would respond. However, she said, “So far it’s been really well received.” She recalls one instance where the group was singing for a patient who was in bed, eyes closed. As the trio began to sing, the patient opened her eyes and a big smile spread across her face. In moments such as this, there’s something that connects each person in the space, said Molly, “It works all around.
The response between the patient and us feels like a kind of co-regulation.”
The Threshold Singers are seeking new members. If you’d like to learn more or explore becoming a threshold singer, please email novascotia@thresholdchoir.org
To hear an interview with the Threshold Singers, visit Information Morning - NS with Portia Clark | Live Radio | CBC Listen