Accessible Music Project, Inc.

05/20/2024

Ever noticed that pretty much everywhere you go there is music playing? The grocery store, the waiting room of basically any place, restaurants, the post office, you name it - there's usually ambient "background" music.

This is on purpose - multiple studies across disciplines have demonstrated that ambient music reduces stress and anxiety, eases tension and pain, encourages shoppers to spend more, and even reduces agitation in dementia sufferers (and that's just the very tip of that iceberg).

There is, however, one place that I have noticed there is never ambient music playing: in assisted living communities. Nursing homes, too. Given the state of what we know about music's effect on the brain (the author of the above quote being a major player in that field), this has always thrown me for a loop.

More disturbing yet, is that so very often when I am in an assisted living or nursing community, I find the residents sitting around a television set that is blaring the endless drone of what can only be called a redundant 24 hour news cycle!

We can do better for our loved ones, and for those who came before us. We NEED to do better.
This is where AMP comes in.

05/06/2024

When the Accessible Music Project began, I expected my biggest hurdle to be finding funding to pay the musicians. I was shocked when I discovered that finding willing musicians to pay was my biggest hurdle!

The familiar complaint was “not enough gigs, not enough pay”. Every one of us was supplementing our income in other ways - getting paid to play with a meal and a beer is fun, but doesn’t help with the bills.

I thought for sure when I offered well-paid, steady gig opportunities that I would have to turn musicians away. Instead, the response was lukewarm on its best day. Most musicians said they thought it was a great idea and that they’d love to be part of it, but when it came down to it there were only a very few musicians that I could rely on.

This was the beginning of my journey to understanding what I now call Music Mythology. Mythology is a collection of stories that are passed down; stories that help us make sense of our world…

I plan to unpack many facets of the Music Mythology, but I’m kicking this series off with one of the most common, and therefore, one of the most deceptive of the Myths: that it is somehow wrong to get paid to play music for certain audiences, but not others; that a disabled or mobility limited audience is somehow to be seen as “poor them”, and thus a volunteer opportunity for the fortunate musician.

Look, there are an awful lot of apparent differences between an AMP audience and an audience at a traditional music venue. And to all of them, I say - so, what? They are music lovers, like you and me. They have enjoyed music their entire lives, prior to moving into an Access Limited nursing or assisted living community. Plain and simple, they represent a professional performance opportunity for today’s musicians. The volunteer model that views these communities as important only around certain holidays continues to leave Community Venues largely void of the joy of music.

But together we can fix this.

05/02/2024

Hi 👋 I'm Greg - some of you might know me as Greg Allen, my singer-songwriter pen name. I started the Accessible Music Project over 25 years ago (back then it went by a different name) and from that inception, I have made it my mission to correct two shortcomings that I identified in the marketplace.

1. I noticed that many of my music buddies had a similar complaint: not enough gigs to keep us busy and, more importantly, not enough gigs that paid a decent wage (in dollars, not beer).

2. After a friend of mine coaxed me into playing for her mother in an assisted living facility, I realized there are countless, unrecognized venues across the country that would love to book contemporary musicians. All I needed to solve was how to get us paid...

And that is how AMP was born — through me putting those puzzle pieces together. I believe that musicians provide an essential service to the public, a service that goes far beyond entertainment and for which they deserve to be well compensated, as other professionals are. I know that our neighbors and loved ones who reside in these access limited communities do not deserve to be left out of the joy of sharing live music simply because they cannot get to a traditional venue.

And I know that more live music in our world will make it a more joyful place for everyone.

02/01/2024

Sneak peek at Chapter 1...

Synopsis: Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play relates my 25+ year dedication to making live contemporary music’s developmental and therapeutic benefits more accessible – a journey resulting in the Accessible Music Project (AMP). AMP pays musicians well to perform for c...

01/31/2024

It all began with USA TODAY's Make a Difference Day.

Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play is the story of my journey to make music more accessible. I suppose it's easy to think that music is everywhe...

01/22/2024

The momentum builds...

In Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play, Greg Allen Morgoglione discusses the Accessible Music Project (AMP), a venture aimed at transforming music accessibility, particularly for seniors. He critiques the music industry's lack of initiatives and advocates for fair compensation for musicians....

01/21/2024

I had an interesting - enlightening even - experience at Rapunzel's Coffee and Books many years ago that gets a mention in Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play. It took place at the first and last songwriting contest I've ever wanted to be part of, and it inspired "The Uneasy Writer", a song about the event and how "I'll never do that to one of my songs ever again!"

Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play is available for Kindle pre-order at Amazon, and the paperback can be pre-ordered at the website.

An innovative, debut memoir from Greg Allen Morgoglione, offering fresh and unique perspective on what it means to be a musician, while building a case for musicians to reconsider their value to society. Preorder the print version preorder the e-book Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play showc...

01/21/2024

Another 5-Star review for Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play!

Please give a "Like" to the page and share with any musical friends. Thanks!

*****

"In Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play, Greg Allen Morgoglione discusses the Accessible Music Project (AMP), a venture aimed at transforming music accessibility, particularly for seniors. He critiques the music industry's lack of initiatives and advocates for fair compensation for musicians. The author tells us about his unique music journey and discusses the transformative power of music across generations. He provides us with details about community venues, tossing out stereotypes about seniors' musical preferences, the evolving music market, advocating for equality, "soul currency," and adapting to contemporary preferences. The author categorically rejects age-based stereotypes and calls for equal regard for seniors as music lovers. The book's substantive themes are written as strategy sessions between Morgoglione, Nate, and Vic as they collaborate on prospects for community music events.

I had a lot of fun reading Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play by Greg Allen Morgoglione, partly because the writing style is casual and conversational in tone, facilitating comfortable reader engagement, and also because of the passion that Morgoglione exudes that practically leaps off the page. I think where the author truly excels is in clearly presenting and explaining complex ideas, such as the disconnect in the music profession's approach to the Access Limited demographic. He very effectively communicates the urgency of addressing this issue, and it goes a long way in reinforcing the argument for better understanding. The standout for me is the emotional impact the book conjures up. I admit I got a little bit choked up when an elderly resident, Mrs. Dodson, asked to see Alice, Morgoglione's dog, during her final moments. I was not expecting such a deep response, and in that instant, the author brought home the role of music in comforting and connecting individuals. Very highly recommended."

Asher Syed for Reader's Favorite

01/19/2024

What is a Community Venue? And why do I make the distinction in my book Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play?

Check out my Goodreads blog!

Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play opens with reflections on the many similarities between the music loving audiences at traditional music venue...

01/19/2024

Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play opens with reflections on the many similarities between music loving audiences at traditional venues like Holly's Diner and Charlottesville Health And Rehab.

Paperback preorder link at www.playsomethingpretty.com
Kindle preorder available at Amazon books.

An innovative, debut memoir from Greg Allen Morgoglione, offering fresh and unique perspective on what it means to be a musician, while building a case for musicians to reconsider their value to society. Preorder the print version preorder the e-book Play Something Pretty That You Like to Play showc...