The transformation was miraculous.
Her audience stared back, blankly.
(They dont all remember me, she later told me.
They see me every two weeks, but many dont know why Im here.)
The effect was immediate.
Chins lifted from chests, eyes opened.
Smiles flickered on one or two faces.
Between verses, she called out questions: Who sang Singin in the Rain?
A white-haired woman said, Gene Kelly!
What is the girls name inWizard of Oz?
A woman in the second row blurted out, Dorothy!
For what are we, ultimately, but the sum of our personal recollections?
Indeed, more so.
Michigan State University launched the first degree program in music therapy in 1944.
But she also played accordion and trumpet.
Nobody went up there, Tomaino recalls.
It was this horrible, horrible place.
Tomaino refused to believe it.
She began to sing: Let me call you sweetheart / Im in love with you …
The noise stopped, she remembers.
People opened their eyes.
Half of them started singing along: Let me hear you whisper / That you love me too.
