PULSE
Stories from the Front Lines of Music and Medicine
MUSIC IS HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN
Pulse is the intersection between music and health.
Between the arts and medicine.
Between the concert stage and the hospital room.
Pulse is a collaboration between a music therapist and a performer with the goal of educating, illuminating, and expanding their intertwined worlds through inspiring performances, engaging talks, and innovative events for audiences of all ages and stages of life.
Pulse Music Media is a creative community built for both online and live-performances, conversations, story-telling, and idea-sharing about the intersecting worlds of music and health.
WHO WE ARE
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Founder, Music Therapist
Dr. SarahRose Black, PhD RP MTA is a registered psychotherapist and certified music therapist, researcher and educator specializing in psychosocial oncology and palliative care at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and in her private practice; Whole Note Psychotherapy. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto and a graduate internship supervisor at Wilfrid Laurier University. SarahRose is the Editor in Chief of the Canadian Journal of Music Therapy, and her research focuses on music therapy and medically assisted dying, music within psilocybin use in advanced cancer care, and music therapy for adolescents and young adults with cancer. As a pianist, vocalist, and music health educator, she has performed, taught, and presented on her clinical work and research across Canada.
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Founder, Cellist, Producer
Andrew Ascenzo is a Toronto-based cellist whose work extends well beyond the traditional role of the performer. He is an artistic director, producer, educator, and collaborator whose work spans performance, recording, and the development of musical and interdisciplinary projects.
Andrew is a Founder, Co-Executive Director, and Cellist of the Canadian Chamber Orchestra, leading its artistic direction, operations, and production alongside performing with the ensemble. He maintains an active career as a freelance musician, performing with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Concert Orchestra, and touring artists including St. Vincent, Lauryn Hill, and Sigur Rós.
His work as an artistic leader and producer includes Music Toronto, Music in the Atrium at Toronto’s Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, the Banff Centre, and Ottawa Chamberfest. He is also co-founder of Pulse Music with music therapist SarahRose Black and teaches at the University of Toronto, where he completed his Doctor of Musical Arts in 2020.
PRESENTING PULSE
A PULSE concert is a storytelling and music event. Each performance is based around stories from the front lines of music and medicine, as told by SarahRose Black, a music therapist and registered psychotherapist founder and director of the music therapy program at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto.
These are stories of hope, love, loss, connection, and healing. These are stories that shine a light on the power of music to affect our lives, our health, and our connection to one another and to ourselves.
Each story is centred around one or several pieces of music, including classical, popular, musical theatre, and original songs written with patients. The music featured in each story is performed live, giving the audience new and relatable context in which to listen and connect to the music.
While the stories we tell are all true, details have been altered and composite patients created in order to protect patient confidentiality. In many cases, permission to share unaltered stories and/or perform patients’ original songs has been explicitly given by the patients or their families.
We collaborate with the top musicians in the industry and provide a unique concert experience. We give audiences a window into the world of music and health through the eyes of a music therapist, inviting them to enjoy live music in a way they never have before.
WHY MUSIC AND HEALTH MATTERS
MUSIC MOVES US.
Through every stage of life, from infancy to older adulthood, music paints a sonic landscape that punctuates our daily lived experiences. Our musical experiences create deeply embedded associations and have the power to hold significant meaning as we move through different seasons of life. The songs, soundtracks, concerts, and musical experiences we encounter shape our identity.
Music impacts our physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health, and affects our biopsychosocial experience of the world. Our pulse entrains to the world around us, matching and aligning with music that inspires us and makes us want to move. A steady and soothing rhythm can regulate our breathing, allowing us to lean into comfort, ease, and relaxation, giving us pause to reflect, as well as a helpful tool to manage anxiety and changes in mood. Music comforts us in times of needs, and celebrates with us in times of joy. Spanning cultures, life experiences, and all ages, music holds us close and carries us through all that we may encounter as individuals, within communities and societies, across cultures, all around the world.
WORK WITH US
Use the form to get in touch and inquire about working with PULSE today.