Canberra’s Alchemy Chorus performs at a recent concert. People with dementia and their carers are being invited to form a new choir in Goulburn. Photo: Supplied.

About eight years ago, Brian Triglone OAM saw a video on YouTube of a choir in the United States made up of people with dementia and their partners.

Brian, whose wife lives with the condition, was immediately interested. From his experience in community choirs and rugby, he knew how music could help those with special needs – and so the Alchemy Chorus was born.

The group currently has over 100 members, and about 70 of them show up once a week to sing.

“I guess you could describe us as semi-serious,” he said. “I’ve read a lot of research about how music can help people living with dementia, and it’s really true.

“We rehearse, we perform, we sing. We’re not looking for sympathy. It’s really about having fun,” he said.

“It’s also a great opportunity for people to get together, people with dementia and their families, and just have a good time. It really helps.

“We also have a time in choir called ‘the way we were,’ where couples, usually the chaperones, can stand up and talk about their lives together. It’s very cathartic.”

While these people are united by their love of music and singing, the choir means much more to everyone involved.

It brings together people living with dementia, their relatives or close friends, volunteer musicians and singers. Playing and singing together can create an atmosphere of joy, storytelling and community through the power of music.

That’s why the group is called Alchemy, Brian said, because it reflects the choir’s mission—to bring different elements together into something truly worthwhile. The choir is inclusive, welcoming people with dementia who can participate and benefit from singing, as well as their caregivers.

Brian said that rather than just choosing music and songs that might be popular, the choir opted for songs that anyone could sing, regardless of their voice.

“We don’t have auditions,” he said. “People can just come and join us, and we work with them based on their voice.

“Most choirs, if you split them up,” Brian said, “would have a few top voices. We have a mix of voices, so we choose the music based on that.

“We also rely on songs that people already know.”

Canberra-based Alchemy is going from strength to strength, drawing large crowds to its weekly rehearsals, and similar choirs have sprung up along the east coast, including on the NSW south coast.

Founder of the Alchemy Chorus, a Canberra choir that includes people with dementia, Brian Triglone, pictured during a recent concert. Photo: Supplied.

And if Goulburn has its way, the historic town could soon see the formation of such a band – in addition to the members, all they need is a conductor and a pianist.

A special concert has been organised for Saturday 14 September, where Alchemy Canberra and Alchemy South Coast will join forces to perform their favourite songs at St Nicholas’ Anglican Church in Goulburn.

The aim is to show the people of Goulburn what a dementia inclusive choir does and to encourage local people to start their own choir.

With support from Goulburn ‘old-timer’ Brian Triglone, and locals Christy Wood and Jenny Ferguson, the plan is to generate enough interest for Goulburn to have its own Alchemy choir.

Brian believes that alchemy is actually a bit of “musical magic.”

The Alchemy Joint Choir will be performing at St Nicholas Anglican Church in Goulburn on NSW Local Government Election Day, Saturday 14 September, from 1pm. Admission is free, but donations are welcome to help establish an Alchemy Choir in the city. To find out more about the Alchemy Chorus, check out their website.