Reawakening the Brain through Music
A composer finds freedom from Tourette’s through music; an amnesiac remembers distant memories when he hears the Grateful Dead; a patient with Parkinson’s listens to her favorite tunes and regains the ability to walk without tremors. What is it about music that can transport us to the past, reawaken distant emotions, and even heal some neurological disorders? Join renowned neurologist and best-selling author Oliver Sacks and pioneering music therapists as they use intimate portraits of patients profoundly transformed by music to explore the neural mechanisms behind music’s healing powers, and discuss possible implications for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, aphasia and other neurological impairments.
Photo by Elena Seibert
Moderator
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Lesley Stahl
Lesley Stahl has been a 60 Minutes correspondent since March 1991. This year marks her 21st season on the show. Stahl started her career in Washington as a Whitehouse correspondent for CBS. More »
Participants
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Oliver Sacks
Neurologist, Author Oliver Sacks, a physician and author, has been called “the poet laureate of medicine" by The New York Times. His books and essays, including The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and An Anthropologist on Mars, are used in schools and universities around the world. More » -
Petr Janata
Cognitive Neuroscientist Petr Janata is a cognitive neuroscientist studying the psychology of music. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Oregon in 1996, where he performed electrophysiological studies of auditory object representations in the barn owl brain and musical image formation in the human brain. More » -
Stanley Jordan
Musician Stanley Jordan is a much acclaimed guitarist known for his expertise in “The Touch” technique, or what’s known as two-handed tapping. More » -
Concetta Tomaino
Music Therapist, Psychologist Concetta Tomaino is the executive director and co-founder of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function and Senior Vice President for Music Therapy at CenterLight Health System (formerly Beth Abraham Family of Health Services), where she has worked since 1980. More »
