WXPN group gives patients musical relief

Bedridden patients at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania might be surprised to find a strange man walk into their rooms, guitar in hand, and play uplifting soft rock.

But that's all in a day's work for members of WXPN's Musicians on Call program, a charity organization whose bedside performances have brightened the lives of over 15,000 patients at four area hospitals.

"These performances are unique because they're at the bedside," said Kim Winnick, director of marketing at WXPN. "Patients really respond to the personal nature of these performances - there's an intimate, one-on-one connection."

WXPN's Musicians on Call program is a branch of the larger Musicians on Call organization, founded in 1999 in New York City.

When musicians Michael Solomon and Vivek Tiwary found that some hospital patients were unable to attend their regular performances, they began traveling from room to room, playing for patients who couldn't attend the concerts. They created Musicians on Call after receiving praise from hospital patients and staff.

"You can feel this magic happen, where- - whatever's going on - it just got a little better," Solomon said.

Over the past ten years, the group has spread to Philadelphia and Nashville and now helps volunteer musicians play for over 1,000 people per week in 20 different hospitals.

In 2004, the organization partnered with WXPN to reach patients at HUP, and recently has expanded to serve four different area hospitals.

WXPN now calls on a list of about 30 musicians to perform weekly at well-attended events.

"This is just a very human endeavor," said local musician Dave Falcone, who is part of Musicians on Call. "They touch us as much as we touch them."

The organization has grown fast. Since 1999, the group's musicians have played for over 100,000 patients around the country.

According to Winnick, the organization aims to expand to more cities and hospitals. It hosts several fundraising concerts each year featuring artists ranging from Miranda Cosgrove to Yo-Yo Ma.

In addition to its in-hospital events, Musicians on Call runs a "CD Pharmacy" program, which distributes donated CDs and CD players to patients in need of entertainment.

"This particular program has been a real godsend to many of the kids," said Richard O'Reilly, chairman of pediatrics at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital. "It brought children out who were really very, very quiet. It really makes for a more positive experience."

Lynn Schuchter, chief of hematology at HUP, was also impressed with the organization's success.

"To have somebody come in and connect with [the patients] through music is incredibly healing and incredibly powerful," she said.

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