Designing new musical technologies for older adults' wellbeing
How can technologies assist us to age creatively?
Collaborating with researchers across music, psychology and engineering, and embedding a participatory approach to involve people with lived experience of dementia, this UKRI FLF funded research project investigates how we can harness emerging technologies to boost opportunities for older adults living with dementia and their carers to interact with music, whether it be listening to music, creating playlists, singing, song writing, or playing a musical instrument.
We propose a radical rethink of how musical experiences are designed for people living with dementia, such that it is built upon a strengths-based approach and prioritises opportunities for agency, creativity, and relationality. See our article about reassessing the goals of music activity in dementia in the Journal of Aging Studies.
Throughout the project lifespan (2021-2028) the team are leading various research activities to:
- Evidence the needs, rewards and barriers for older adults with cognitive impairments and their carers in using musical interfaces
- Develop tools and technologies to facilitate music interaction
- Analyse how these interfaces can be optimised for maximum usage and enjoyment, sense of wellbeing, agency, and social integration.
Design recommendations & The Slider Box
Here we detail our five design recommendations for new music interaction tools for living with dementia. These have been developed working in consultation with numerous research advisory groups, our local DEEP group, and attendees and volunteers at local memory cafes across Sheffield. See also our report on what we have learned from our participatory research approaches: You Said, We Did.
Introducing the Slider Box: This is a mixing desk analogy that allows users to either listen to different tracks, mix stems of familiar music, or even create their own. See here for our work developing and evaluating the Audio Playgrounds as a creative music-making platform - much like a choose-your-own-adventure book for music.
Installations in residential care
We have worked alongside SheffCare, Colten Care (UK) and Ryman HealthCare (NZ) to explore how the slider box might be used in residential care settings to increase engagement with music, and agency for residents. In 2025-2026 we will be partnering with the National Activity Providers Association to expand deployments in residential care homes across the UK.
JOMI
PhD student Michael Neokleous is co-designing a musical interaction system named JOMI: The Jamming Companion for Music Improvisation software (JOMI) is a digital musician that utilises machine learning in order to initiate and sustain a musical conversation (call-and-response) between itself and other parties.
Music Memory Makers Duet System
The music memory makers duet system consists of physical devices which are analogies of the mechanical music box, using a "pepper grinder" action to continuously control the music.
Non-musicians can duet together playing familiar music. Initially used as a way to try and synchronise different elements of the music together, we've been using these systems in our project for people to take agency in when different parts of the music are present, and even change the speed of the music.
Interacting with music in new (and old) ways
As part of our project, we have been developing new and adapting existing devices to allow opportunities for agency, creativity, and relationality in living with dementia. We aim to do this in collaboration with people living with dementia both in the community and those who live in residential care. Please also see our Futurum Careers article where we explain how we do this out in the community, and our article detailing the use of acousmatic storytelling to enhance communication and social interaction in residential care.
Living with Young Onset Dementia: Our Music, Our Voice
In May 2025, as part of Dementia Action Week, we launched a co-produced short film with the young onset hub at Age UK Sheffield. The film is made by real voices of people living with young-onset dementia, centring their diverse experiences and interactions with music, existing and emerging technologies. It premiered on 24th May 2025 at Hillsborough Pavillion, along with a discussion panel featuring many of the people living with dementia featured in the film.
The use of technology for the arts in general
What technologies are being developed for people living with dementia to engage with the arts? This article details our scoping review that draws together recent advances in technologies for the creative arts for people living with dementia.
How have arts workers and organisations delivered digitally to people living with dementia during COVID-19? This article details the massive efforts undertaken by several arts workers and organisations to convert face to face arts activities online during the pandemic.
