Music and Medicine Symposium to focus on voice care for the performer

Caring for the mind and body of the artist requires equally artful expertise. A special dose of clinical skill and creativity is essential when the worlds of art and medical science intersect.

The Third Annual Music and Medicine Symposium, “Care of the Voice for the Music Performer and Teacher,” to be held Jan. 25-26 at Wright State University will explore how the medical and music communities can work together to encourage wellness and promote healing.

The free event, co-sponsored by the WSU Department of Music and the Boonshoft School of Medicine, will open with a concert by international opera performers and PBS’s Hallelujah Broadway stars Rodrick Dixon and Alfreda Burke on Tuesday, Jan. 25, at 8 p.m., in Schuster Hall in the WSU Creative Arts Center. The two-day event will also include performances by school of medicine and music department faculty.

The symposium on Jan. 26 will feature Michael S. Benninger, M.D., chair of the Head and Neck Institute at the Cleveland Clinic, who will present “Caring for the Professional Voice.” A graduate of Harvard University, Benninger received his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University and completed his residency at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. He has authored and edited several books, articles and chapters focusing on voice care. His most recent book is The Performer’s Voice. Benninger, Dixon and Burke will also participate in panel discussions along with local music professionals.

The symposium program also features speech pathologist Anita Marie Greer, program manager for acute therapy services at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, who will present “Rehabilitation and Exercises for the Strained Voice.” Greer specializes in the treatment of brain injury, neurological disorders, swallowing disorders and voice disorders. She holds degrees in voice performance, music therapy, vocal pedagogy and speech-language pathology.

The symposium is presented by CELIA (Collaborative Education, Leadership and Innovation in the Arts), a WSU Center of Excellence.

To register, or for more information on the symposium, including a full list of presenters, performers and topics as well as a daily schedule, visit www.wright.edu/music/music-med.

For more information or to schedule an interview contact: Cindy Young, Marketing and Communications, Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, (937) 775-4839 or cindy.young@wright.edu. News is online at www.med.wright.edu