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The concept of the knowledge concert was developed by researchers at the Royal College of Music and Karolinska Institute in Sweden where live musicians and scientific researchers creates a performance related to an important societal issue. The emotional evocativeness music allows it to act as a facilitator of knowledge acquisition which it is argued enriches the learning environment. In this study, we have built on the idea of the knowledge concert with a novel focus on Nobel prize winners’ work. Knowledge is generated from live musicians and narratives from a cicerone. The two originators will in this study develop the concept of Prelude before Nobel as a knowledge concert. Further knowledge related to the Nobel Prize scientific findings was obtained by listening to live music. In this experience thoughts and feelings were stimulated, which increased the receptivity and understanding of the Nobel Prize in terms of both content and meaning.

Intresset för forskning, utbildning och utveckling inom social hållbarhet, inte minst under kriser, fortsätter att öka. Covid-19 pandemin, kriget i Ukraina, klimatförändringarna, den minskade biologiska mångfalden och potentiella hot såsom politisk polarisering och AI påverkar området social hållbarhet. För tio år sedan etablerades ”Centrum för social hållbarhet” (CSS) på Karolinska Institutet och olika forskare med sina perspektiv på ”Socialt hållbar utveckling – fokus på empati, compassion och altruism” bidrog till ett temanummer av Socialmedicinsk tidskrift 2013. För fem år sedan gav vi också ut temanumret ”Social hållbarhet” i Socialmedicinsk tidskrift 2018, och konstaterar att området är minst lika aktuellt idag. Vi har bjudit in forskargrupper som är intresserade av social hållbarhet, och tillsammans har vi skapat ett nytt temanummer där flera bidrag handlar om yttre och inre hållbarhet i relation till kriser.

Stress påverkar prestation, patientsäkerhet och arbetsmiljö inom hälso- ochsjukvården. Under kriser såsom tex Covid-19 pandemin, kan hög arbetsbelastning och arbete under tidspress, med begränsade resurser, då svåra beslut och prioriteringar behöver göras, leda till moralisk stress, vilket om det återkommande sker leda till moralisk ”skada” och stressrelaterad ohälsa. Därför är det viktigt att sjukvårdspersonal redan under sin utbildning får lära sig om hur de påverkas av stress och att identifiera olika moraliskt utmanande situationer, att de får träna olika stresshanteringsmetoder, samt tillämpa dem i olika simulerade akutmedicinska situationer. Utöver kunskap om stress utifrån ett individperspektiv behövs insikter kring hur stress kan genereras utifrån strukturella/organisatoriska förhållande som kan behöva åtgärdas i stället för eller parallellt med insatser på individ eller gruppnivå.

Through a historical perspective, the overall aim with this study is to deepen the understanding of arts and aesthetics, in relation to health, for the benefi- cial use in higher education programs. Since prehistoric time, mankind has been using different art forms for health reasons. Artwork created by a society is a product of the culture that prevails within that society. Aesthetics is con- nected to art, and it spans over a wider field than just art. This literature re- view study brings different historical views on arts, aesthetics, and creativity. The human need for art, music and health is essentially the same through the ages. By bringing in a historical perspective on the healing powers of art and aesthetics we can be better equipped to reintroduce arts in higher education also as a healthy factor. We need to understand our history to be able to create an understanding of the healthy meaning of art for future higher edu- cation students. Lessons that have been used for millennia must not be lost.

The present study aimed to increase understanding of how singing activities may be initiated in primary school, and what support and assistance teachers require to conduct singing activities as an integrated part of the school day. Five music teachers participated in a focus group interview. The following main themes were identified: 1) pedagogical and methodological flexibility, 2) the role of routines and familiarity, 3) the embodied and multimodal dimensions of singing, 4) the importance of accompaniment and instruments, 5) the experience of insecurity and obstacles and 6) the perceived synergies between singing and other learning activities. This knowledge may be important to integrate within music teacher education in order to secure singing’s place in schools.

The present study aimed to increase understanding of how singing activities may be initiated in primary school, and what support and assistance teachers require to conduct singing activities as an integrated part of the school day. Five music teachers participated in a focus group interview. The following main themes were identified: 1) pedagogical and methodological flexibility, 2) the role of routines and familiarity, 3) the embodied and multimodal dimensions of singing, 4) the importance of accompaniment and instruments, 5) the experience of insecurity and obstacles, and 6) the perceived synergies between singing and other learning activities. This knowledge may be important to integrate within music teacher education in order to secure singing’s place in schools.

There is robust evidence that the arts can be used to support mental health and well-being. However, there has been little exploration of the history of these types of activities. We believe it is meaningful to examine history to learn how best to manage and support those suffering from poor mental and physical health today. A clinically tested 10-step art-based program for ex- hausted students and patients has been developed over the course of twenty years of clinical practice and was created through a “learning by doing” con- cept, in which embodied knowledge was gained by participants undertaking “guided” bodily experiences. We found that the program led to an increase in conscious awareness of well-being among students and teachers. This article discusses the variation of the original program, adjusted to fit the needs of students and teachers in higher academic programs today. We also construct a bridge between past and present, by conducting a historical literature review. By doing this, we bring to light knowledge that our ancestors held about the signs and signals that we today could interpret as indicators of stress.

Background: Choir singing is an activity that engages individuals all over the world with a broad demographic representation. Both qualitative and quantitative studies have examined the benefits of the activity but very few have examined the effects when someone loses access to it and stops singing. Objectives: Examining the governmental and organisational responses precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, we asked what happens when a choir singer loses all of their routines associated with regular participation in choir singing. Materials and Methods: One national choir organization in Sweden (n = 3163) and one in Norway (n = 1881) were approached with a short survey. This comprised questions relating to the issue “what do you as a choir singer misses the most?” Each participant was asked to rate the importance of a number of elements that pertain to the experience of choir singing. Results: The social aspect of singing emerged as having the strongest weight in terms of perceived loss that is, it was the element that the participants missed the most. Professional singers report that they miss the aesthetic experiences, flow, and all the physical aspects (physical training, voice training, and breathing training) to a greater degree as compared to reports from the amateurs. The importance of aesthetic experiences and physical components appeared to rise with increasing number of years that an individual had engaged with choir singing. Conclusion: In the Scandinavian setting, the social aspect has a stronger weight than the other components and this seemed to be more significant in Norway compared to Sweden.

Subjective experiences of autistic adults remain under-researched, especially in the field of art. To learn more about their uses and functions of music, we interviewed 13 autistic adults and, through a hermeneutic-phenomenological analysis, found four overarching themes: Well-being, Identity and self-development, Connectedness, and Negative experiences. Findings show a broad and deep meaning of music in their lives, spanning from seemingly trivial functions such as making chores more enjoyable to existential questions such as choosing to stay alive. We discuss the often-overlooked negative effects or experiences of music, noting that positive and negative effects must always be addressed together if we are to use music to lower stress and support well-being.

Transition to sustainability is a process that requires change on all levels of society from the physical to the psychological. This review takes an interdisciplinary view of the landscapes of research that contribute to the development of pro-social behaviors that align with sustainability goals, or what we call ‘inner sustainability’. Engaging in musical and dance activities can make people feel trust and connectedness, promote prosocial behavior within a group, and also reduce prejudices between groups. Sustained engagement in these art forms brings change in a matter of seconds (such as hormonal changes and associated stress relief), months (such as improved emotional wellbeing and learning outcomes), and decades (such as structural changes to the brains of musicians and dancers and superior skills in expressing and understanding emotion). In this review, we bridge the often-separate domains of the arts and sciences by presenting evidence that suggests music and dance promote self-awareness, learning, care for others and wellbeing at individual and group levels. In doing so, we argue that artistic practices have a key role to play in leading the transformations necessary for a sustainable society. We require a movement of action that provides dance and music within a constructive framework for stimulating social sustainability.

This case-study presents different strategies that were explored by the patient ́s mother (who is a researcher in music and medicine) when her 17-year-old daughter was diagnosed with ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) – also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). ME is not widely recognized in the Global as well as the Swedish population at large, and within healthcare there are no standardized recommended treatments, partly due to the lack of published evidence-based studies. This case-study aims to provide insights into how the Swedish healthcare system works, how different clinics and hospitals within it operate and interconnect; and how these contribute to health outcomes after 15 months of treatment.

The purpose of the study is to explore a new research methodology that will improve our understanding of "flow" through indicators of physiological and qualitative state. We examine indicators of ‘flow’ experienced by musicians of a youth string quartet, two women (25, 29), and two men (23, 24). Electrocardiogram (ECG) equipment was used to record heart rate variability (HRV) data throughout the four movements in one and the same quartet performed during two concerts. Individual physiological indicators of flow were supplemented by assessments of group ‘state flow’ (means from standardized questionnaires) and a group interview in which the musicians provided qualitative data. A matrix was constructed for the characterization of different kinds of demands in the written music in each one of the four movements for each one of the musicians. HRV derived from ECG data showed non-significant trends for group state flow across the eight musical episodes. Individual-level analysis showed that compared to the other players the first violin player had the highest mean heart rate and the lowest increase in High Frequency power (HF) in HRV during this particular movement, particularly during the second concert. The qualitative data illustrated how an interplay of synchronised social interactions between this player and their colleagues during the musical performance was associated with a feeling of group state flow and served to support the first violinist. The case illustrates that the proposed mixed methodology drawing on physiological and qualitative data, has the potential to provide meaningful information about experiences of a flow state, both at individual and group level. Applications in future research are possible., Performance Evaluation project

Background: Music listening can improve acquisition of new knowledge.Purpose: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the emotional and cognitive effects of a knowledge concert on the attending audience. Methodology: The audience was asked to complete a Visual Analogue Scale (10 cm) before and after listening to the concert, along five variables: Arousal, Degree of happiness, Degree of worry, Daily worries and Benevolence. Follow-up qualitative interviews gathered narratives from the participants. Findings: 228 concert attendees took part in the study by completing the questionnaires (51 percent of the whole audience). Statistically significant changes were observed in the outcome measures for: Arousal (p=0.002), Daily worries (p<0.001) and Degree of happiness (p=0.01). Degree of worry interacted with age (p<0.001). No changes were found for Benevolence (p=0.93). Gender and previous music experiences did not make a difference to feelings evoked by the music. Age, however, was important since younger participants became more worried by the concert than older. Originality: We discuss the potential role of future knowledge concerts that comprise qualities explored, such as mitigating a variety of embodied psychological capacities, including reflection and agency in audiences, facilitating learning about sensitive issues, and potentially also transformation towards prosocial mindsets and behavior.

Recent technical developments and early clinical examples support that precision medicine has potential to provide novel diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for patients with complex diseases, who are not responding to existing therapies. Those solutions will require integration of genomic data with routine clinical, imaging, sensor, biobank and registry data. Moreover, user-friendly tools for informed decision support for both patients and clinicians will be needed. While this will entail huge technical, ethical, societal and regulatory challenges, it may contribute to transforming and improving health care towards becoming predictive, preventive, personalised and participatory (4P-medicine)., Ett av de största problemen för många patienter är attde inte förbättras av läkemedelsbehandling. Detta orsakar, förutom lidande, stora samhällskostnader. Viktigaorsaker är sjukdomars molekylära komplexitet samt sendiagnostik och behandling. Precisionsmedicin kan bidra till att lösa problem genom att karakterisera och tolka denna komplexitet. Ettexempel är att läkemedelsbehandling kan provas ut ochindividualiseras genom datorsimuleringar. Precisionsmedicin har potential att påtagligt förbättrabåde hälsa och ekonomi. Detta kräver en bred IT-strategi för att integrera genomik- och andra storskaligadatakällor, som inkluderar nationella superdator-,visualiserings- och AI-centrum.

In this study we examined a case where twelve participants conducted farewell ceremonies for their deceased relatives. Taking a qualitative approach, we used interviews and questionnaires to focus on life stories that involve grieving. Specifically, we asked about experiences of the grief process as related to choice of music. Our results indicate that the role of music in farewell rituals is important for the grieving process in several ways. Firstly, music was associated with positive memories of the loved one and gave rise to experiences of recognition. Secondly, music facilitated active participation in the grieving process through choosing farewell music together with a relative. Thirdly, selecting music for the funeral in advance, together with their loved ones, was also experienced as hopeful, comforting and consoling before, during and after the bereavement., Music and rituals

BACKGROUND: There has been insufficient study about how academic working life of researchers can be supported. OBJECTIVE: We examine the use of a nature and art-related activity retreat designed for researchers. The purpose was to evaluate if and how researchers perceived different workshop experiences set in nature as meaningful and important with regards to their self-care. METHODS: A mixed group of six researchers from Sweden, Finland, and the United States met for a three-day retreat consisting of self-selected nature and art-related activities. From data constituted from participant reflections, a focus group interview, a three months follow-up questionnaire, and an analysis of the workshops undertaken; three major themes were identified: “Sharing and connection”, “Embodiment” and “Nature”. RESULTS: Analysis of the workshop-style exercises did not show significant variance in reported meaningfulness and usefulness related to the activity itself. However, there was a strong correlation between perceived value and shared experience where the sharing of the natural space was felt to put humanity in perspective. CONCLUSION: Organizing and systematizing health preventive retreats for researchers in academia may be an important part of the sustainabile academic community in which the researcher needs to be better taken care of in a more embodied way. Although this study was conducted prior to COVID-19, such retreats and potentially also on-line versions) could be useful for managing through the pandemic and afterwards, in our new “normal”., Taking care of the researcher project

Background Choir singing is an activity that engages individuals all over the world with a broad demographic representation. Both qualitative and quantitative studies have examined the benefits of the activity but very few have examined the effects when someone loses access to it and stops singing. Objectives Examining the governmental and organisational responses precipitated by the COVID 19- pandemic, we asked what happens when a choir singer loses all of their routines associated with regular participation in choir singing. Materials and Methods One national choir organization in Sweden (n= 3163) and one in Norway (n=1881) were approached with a short survey. This comprised questions relating to the issue “what do you as a choir singer miss the most?” Each participant was asked to rate the importance of a number of elements that pertain to the experience of choir singing. Results The social aspect of singing emerged as having the strongest weight in terms of perceived loss i.e. it was the element that the participants missed the most. Professional singers report that they miss the aesthetic experiences, flow, and all the physical aspects (physical training, voice training and breathing training) to a greater degree as compared to reports from the amateurs. The importance of aesthetic experiences and physical components appeared to rise with increasing number of years that an individual had engaged with choir singing. Conclusion In the Scandinavian setting, the social aspect has a stronger weight than the other components and this seemed to be more significant in Norway compared to Sweden

Purpose: Interest in the health relevance of music has been growing rapidly, yet few studies have addressed the protective role of music for music professionals themselves. In the current study, we investigated music professionals’ (music teachers, music therapists, musicians and academics) health, particularly their uses of music as a resource for their psychological health. Design: An online survey (N = 504) for music professionals was conducted across four Nordic countries. Participants responded to questions on music as a resource for psychological health and assessed their general levels of health and health behaviors. Their self-reported health was compared to similar prior data from the general Danish population (N = 14,022). Findings: Music professionals demonstrated high levels of self-reported health and health behaviors and approved of the idea of music as a resource for their psychological health. The most important psychological function of music for them was that music provided affective experiences. Music also provided feelings of belonging and supported mood regulation, but did not really offer relaxation or help to concentrate. Music teachers and therapists reported significantly higher use of music as a personal resource for psychological health than musicians and academics. Value: The results provide new insights into music playing a dual role – professional and personal resource – for different types of music professionals. The findings have relevance for how to address music in the training of musicians and create grounds for dialogue about the role of music for music professionals in comparison to laymen., Music and health project KMH

The purpose of the study is to explore a new research methodology that will improve our understanding of "flow" through indicators of physiological and qualitative state. We examine indicators of ‘flow’ experienced by musicians of a youth string quartet, two women (25, 29), and two men (23, 24). Electrocardiogram (ECG) equipment was used to record heart rate variability (HRV) data throughout the four movements in one and the same quartet performed during two concerts. Individual physiological indicators of flow were supplemented by assessments of group ‘state flow’ (means from standardized questionnaires) and a group interview in which the musicians provided qualitative data. A matrix was constructed for the characterization of different kinds of demands in the written music in each one of the four movements for each one of the musicians. HRV derived from ECG data showed non-significant trends for group state flow across the eight musical episodes. Individual-level analysis showed that compared to the other players the first violin player had the highest mean heart rate and the lowest increase in High Frequency power (HF) in HRV during this particular movement, particularly during the second concert. The qualitative data illustrated how an interplay of synchronised social interactions between this player and their colleagues during the musical performance was associated with a feeling of group state flow and served to support the first violinist. The case illustrates that the proposed mixed methodology drawing on physiological and qualitative data, has the potential to provide meaningful information about experiences of a flow state, both at individual and group level. Applications in future research are possible.

Performance Evaluation

Listening to music can facilitate improvement of cognitive skills and emotional intelligence, which are key antecedents of learning. Music listening can also improve auditory perception and memory. Adjacent to a concert of music evoking strong emotions, the audience was asked to complete a Visual Analogue Scale (10-cm) before and after listening to the concert, along five variables Arousal, Joy, Degree of upset, Daily worries and Benevolence. Changes in the responses to these scales were subject to analysis. Statistically significant changes were observed in the outcome measures of arousal (p=0.005), daily worries (p<0.001), degree of upset (p=0.048) and joy (p<0.001) but were not found for benevolence (p=0.93) in 228 concert attendees who completed the questionnaires. Age, gender and previous music experiences did not make a difference to perception of the music. Attending a music concert with sensitive, emotionally charged topics significantly contributed to stimulating emotional interpretation, which was used as preparation for a reflective participation in subsequent satellite seminars.

BACKGROUND: There has been insufficient study about how academic working life of researchers can be supported. OBJECTIVE: We examine the use of a nature and art-related activity retreat designed for researchers. The purpose was to evaluate if and how researchers perceived different workshop experiences set in nature as meaningful and important with regards to their self-care. METHODS: A mixed group of six researchers from Sweden, Finland, and the United States met for a three-day retreat consisting of self-selected nature and art-related activities. From data constituted from participant reflections, a focus group interview, a three months follow-up questionnaire, and an analysis of the workshops undertaken; three major themes were identified: “Sharing and connection”, “Embodiment” and “Nature”. RESULTS: Analysis of the workshop-style exercises did not show significant variance in reported meaningfulness and usefulness related to the activity itself. However, there was a strong correlation between perceived value and shared experience where the sharing of the natural space was felt to put humanity in perspective. CONCLUSION: Organizing and systematizing health preventive retreats for researchers in academia may be an important part of the sustainabile academic community in which the researcher needs to be better taken care of in a more embodied way. Although this study was conducted prior to COVID-19, such retreats and potentially also on-line versions) could be useful for managing through the pandemic and afterwards, in our new “normal”., Taking care of the researcher project

Both singing and playing instruments in a group have been described in narratives as activities that increase cohesiveness. It has been speculated that music making is at the core of cultural activities in the history of humans. Music, dance and religious rituals including visual arts may have arisen because it was necessary to create strong and reliable bonds in a group, and such activities were effective for achieving this goal. This may even have increased chances of survival in life-threatening environments and this may still be true. According to our study of the Swedish Twin Registry, there is a clear relationship between total number of music practice hours in life (particularly ensemble practice) and ability to handle emotions. In monozygotic twins who are within-pair discordant with regard to piano-playing (one twin has practiced piano extensively and the other not) it has been shown that the size of the corpus callosum, the bridge between the right and the left hemispheres, is larger in the playing twin. Since corpus callosum is important not only for coordination of muscles in the right and left halves of the body but also for emotional skill this is of particular importance – music training may stimulate parts of the brain that govern emotion handling. During performance, strong group interactions can occur both within a music ensemble and between the ensemble and the audience. In our group we have an ongoing project MUSETHICA that examines biological, psychological and social processes when one ensemble plays the same piece in front of different audiences. Accordingly, the audience reaction is studied by means of visual analogue scales, group flow in the ensemble by means of a standardized questionnaire (flow synchronization scale) and heart rate variability on line (for the assessment of sympathetic and parasympathetic balance) during the concerts in all the members of the ensemble. Qualitative interview data focusing on perceived performance quality, Performance Evaluation project

Performance Evaluation

Music and health

Communication between people can easily be regarded as a piece of music. All ingredients are there; The pitch, the rythm,, the coordination of movement patterns, the energy, the interpretation of gestures and mimicry. Music therefore is (or should be) a part of all communication in the medical world, as part of the Medicine and part of academia.From our findings regarding the theem #metoo; "We don’t use the same vocabular of “body borders” when you are talking to a person outside the music- and dance world”. "As a dancer/musican you are trained to regulate and adapt your perception, compared to a non dancer or non musician”. “To be touched” can mean so many different things for different people”. "There are differences between physial and emotional sensations”. “We have different body memories that affect our perception totally different”. Using the strong artistic experience that the performance of a musical work provides, we explore a) how musicians and composers can express and communicate difficult feelings and b) how emotional expressions from music influence the audience after attending the concerts. Our "knowledge concert", dealing with charged and sensitive topic as #metoo, is evaluated and reflected on.

Out of our bodies means out of our minds. The way we perceive and make sense of the world is a function not only of our brain's cognitive function but also of our sensory and motor functions as well. The term embodiment is used to describe the ways in which cognition has its basis in the physical body, and the definition is built up from a theoretical focus according to Niedenthal et al (2005) on the brain´s modality-specific systems that are constituted by, first, the sensory systems, which regulates perception of a current situation, and second, the motor systems, which make action possible, and finally the introspective systems, which govern cognitive operations and conscious experiences of emotion. The Arts incorporate these three systems, and currently there is a growing interest in how different artistic activities i.e. music and dance can enhance empathy and compassion in working environments, where wellbeing and successful leadership can grow. From systematic reviews, we know that we need more specific organisational interventions targeting psychosocial factors building on psychosomatic theory and more likely, these interventions should be grounded in the physical body (embodied) and linked to compassion to be able to better protect emotional exhaustion. So, how could we develop compassion embodied skills in our work places, in a more practical manner, and where does the art come in?

For academic researchers the use of retreats in not yet commonly presented in the literature, and thus evaluations are also scarce. The increasing administrative burden as well as the pressure to “publish or perish” is well known. Being a researcher and seeking knowledge means that you face a potentially limitless amount of work and therefore it is important that we become more aware of our embodiment and adept in the skills of reading the warning signals of stress. Many musicians share this experience The results show a strong correlation between perceived value and shared experience where the sharing of the natural space was felt to put humanity in perspective. Irrespective of how the different workshops were evaluated, the total experience was related to a strong embodied share dexperience. Conclusion: 1.We need of a new vocabulary for researching researchers’ and musicians well-being, 2.The capacity of nature-related activities ability and meaning in the curriculum of academic life and in the life of a musician is warranted.

"The objective of the project Quality of Life - Health and Culture is to strengthen Nordic-Russian cooperation and exchange of knowledge on culture in health care. Culture and health is a relatively new growing knowledge field in the Nordic countries and NW Russia. A healthy population has a positive influence on the countries’ competitiveness, growth and innovative capacity. The combination of culture and health cooperation contributes to increased sustainability within health care. The overall purpose is to enhance capacity of experts on health and culture in NW Russia and the Nordic countries by introducing Nordic and Russian experiences and knowledge of art and culture on health"., Nordic-Russian Project Quality of Life - Health and Culture

Background: Anecdote suggests that listening to music can help to distract from worries about ongoing life problems. Purpose: In this study we examine the phenomenon and ask, to what extent does music listening alleviate worry, and under what circumstances? Our focus was on the immediate temporary effects. Methodology: We performed four pilot experiments with audiences comprised of different ages and backgrounds of musical experience. As part of these experiments, we constructed a visual analogue scale (VAS) to assess “daily worry” together with the three other dimensions of tiredness-arousal, sadness-happy and anxiety-calmness. Participants were asked to listen to live classical music and to fill out the VAS before and after assessments. The experiments enabled us to examine the similarities and differences among audiences of different ages and music experience with regard to the capacity for music to distract them from their worries, what we term ‘worry distraction’. Findings: In the different listening situations, the self-rating of daily worries decreases after listening to live, high-quality professional performances of classical music. In our experiments, previous experience of classical music does not have a significant effect on decreased worry while listening. University level education in general, however, is associated with an increased effect. This prompts a discussion regarding the role education plays as a determinant for health – including the relationship between experiences of music in relation to health. Originality: It is striking that live classical music could affect daily worries of people across different age groups evaluated with our simple and easily distributed Visual Analogue Scale. This could therefore be recommended for evaluations in other contexts.

The drive to learn and engage in music varies among individuals. Global motivation to do something can be intrinsic, for example, the joy and satisfaction in an activity. But motivation behind our action can also be extrinsic, such as the desire for fame, status or increased financial resources. The type of motivation probably influences to what degree individuals engage in musical activities. In this study, we examined the associations between the level of musical engagement and self-rated global motivation, factoring in age and sex, in a sample of 5,435 individuals. Musical engagement ranged from no music activity to amateurs and professional musicians. We found that intrinsic motivation increases with level of music activity and that motivation differs depending on sex, with females scoring higher on intrinsic motivation than males. Such differences may be considered in adjusting the forms of support offered to young musicians in music education. The phenomenon of motivation is complex, and we have highlighted areas that require further investigation, but this study has elucidated some differences in motivation types found in men and women, and between non-musicians, amateurs and professional musicians.

Writer's block, a common form of procrastination, can have a serious negative impact on an individual's academic performance. In this case study, a student with writer's block was interviewed and asked to perform body movements that represented the process of writing a master's thesis. A micro-phenomenological method was used to investigate the student's experience of writer's block and the role of an inner voice. The analysis unveiled the process by which the inner voice impeded the student, i.e. how the student perceived a set of mental images, movements, and sensations in relation to the 'inner voice'. The findings suggest that non-verbal modes of learning - through movement - may be applied productively to overcome writer's block and other forms of procrastination in broader areas such as research writing. Moreover, the micro-phenomenological method, together with the interpretation of video recordings, can reveal valuable information regarding this learning process in higher education.

The objective of the project Quality of Life - Health and Culture is to strengthen Nordic-Russian cooperation and exchange of knowledge on culture in health care. Culture and health is a relatively new growing knowledge field in the Nordic countries and NW Russia. A healthy population has a positive influence on the countries’ competitiveness, growth and innovative capacity. The combination of culture and health cooperation contributes to increased sustainability within health care. The overall purpose is to enhance capacity of experts on health and culture in NW Russia and the Nordic countries by introducing Nordic and Russian experiences and knowledge of art and culture on health. The Fairy tale project is part of this Nordic Russian collaboration., Fairy tale and music

Performance Evaluation

Promote inter-generational meetings between young people and senior citizens - using internet based music videos Online music videos from I-pad, as a mediating element for communication between the youths and the elders, has been studied in a project in Sweden. It is a multi-purpose, arts-based intervention project for young adults interacting with 68 members of the elderly population who have dementia. The project aims to harness the technological sophistication of young adults to offer elderly sufferers of dementia access to music videos which the elderly participant remembers from their youth. The process also includes nurses and family relatives to the elderly. The interactive outcome of the project was analysed with qualitative data. The dementia sufferers were emotionally stimulated, and for the families of the residents, it provides a model and a transitional space within which to connect to their family member with dementia. For the caretakers, it enriches their programme and humanize the heavy work load of caring. For the youth, it helps counter a culture that is too involved in computers by redeveloping experience with non-verbal human interaction based on empathy and emotional and embodied knowledge. On the other hand, the I-pad activity was also experienced from the nurses as a threat to their own role, pushing them away from more meaningful emotional interactions with the resident. The nurses also felt they had no time to do these “meaningful” things because of heavily work load. Non-verbal embodied communication, emotional mind and arts in health theories will be used to discuss the findings. Keywords: Dementia, Embodied communication, Inter-generational meetings, Internet-based music, I-pad