After three strokes, Jenni Moore is still keeping a beat and a smile.
In an AdventHealth Central Florida neurology wing, Moore was jamming away on a xylophone with the hospital’s developing program “Strokestra,” an ensemble of musicians and stroke patients making music to encourage positive healing.
“It's a wonderful thing for patients and really anybody that's involved, and certainly the musicians as well,” Moore said. The program is led by the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando, in partnership with AdventHealth and the London-based Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Strokestra began in Hull, England, 10 years ago.
“There's a lot of people, stroke survivors, up in that region of the U.K., and out of that came Strokestra,” said Tim Steiner, Strokestra’s creator and director. “Music has an effect on your body and your brain, an incredibly intense effect. It's a participatory project meaning that we invite everyone actually to take part in playing instruments.”