Our Mission:

Sound Care

The mission of The Stairwell Project is to work with hospital staff, patients and their families in order to provide professional musicians who will bring a calming musical presence into the hospital wards, foyers and public spaces as “musicians in hospitals”. Our work revolves around re-imagining clinical spaces and re-imagining clinical practice for staff, patients, families and friends.

Recording success - the You Can Make Some Noise Workshops 2023 crew in December at the QUT Recording Studio, Kelvin Grove. Many thanks is due to lead mentor Danny Widdicombe - outstanding yellow shirt - and sound engineers Ben and Dan and at the QUT studios. We recorded 6 of the songs written over the year with plans for release early in 2024.

[ LtoR] **Zac Sacrewski, Andrew Doo, Andrew Saragossi and Jodie O’Brien performing in the foyer of the RBWH late in 2015.** Photo Credit: Cloe Veryard.

Stairwell musicians and You Can Make Some Noise musicians Joe Rabjohns and Joe Fan [ patient and musician] at the recent RBWH Foundation Fund Raiser day and Sunrise C7 Live feed on June 14, 2023 in the Sony You Can Centre

**Ian Ahles** - performing at Cancer Care Services Day Treatment - Joyce Tweddell Building RBWH 2018 [Photo Credit: Peter Breen]

Jordan Brodie - Guitarist RBWH and St Vincent’s. 2021[Photo Credit Peter McGhie.]

**Dr Andrea Vocaturo in day treatment ward, Joyce Tweddell Building, RBWH 20221** [Photo Credit: Peter McGhie]

L to R: Trio in the Foyer, RBWH 2021 John Reeves [ Piano Accordion] Dr John Varney [ D Bass] Dr Michael Knopf [ Guitar] and patient. Photo Credit: Peter McGhie

You Can Make Some Noise kicks off again on July 13, 2023 at RBWH in the Sony You Can Centre, Joyce Tweddell building. Open to all cancer and remission young adults [ 15-25] Contact Joe Fan on josephfan.c@gmail.com

The Stairwell Project started 7 years ago. The Jugglers board, Stairwell Musicians and Peter Breen, [Founder/Curator] have begun talking with the Brisbane music group Topology about collaborating with us to expand the program in 2023 at RBWH. Watch this space!

St Vincent’s Health Arts Curator, Jess Olding has taken on the curation of the Brisbane and Chermside programs until June 30, 2023.

You Can Make Some Noise workshop kicks off again on October 31, 2023 at the Sony You Can Centre, Level 6, Joyce Tweddell Building RBWH from 10.00am - 12.00pm. All patients aged 15-25 who are currently undergoing treatment or are in remission are invited to come and bring friends. Previous music writing or performing experience is not required. There is no fee for this workshop - all fees for musicians are covered by Jugglers Art Space Inc and Topology. Tutors: Danny Widdicombe, John Babbage, Jade Montgomery.

As we continue to build towards 2024 and our new partners - Topology - we talked through what the new year might hold and how we might attract more particiapants.

Photo Credit: David Kapernick

John Reeves - Piano Accordion the foyer atrium of the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

Joe Fan has been part of the You Can Make Some Noise Workshops at the Sony You Can Centre since we kicked them off in 2022. He was with us in the recording studio in December 2023. His cancer journey has, sadly, taken him into palliative care but he continues to strive to survive with his partner Ainslie Plumb - a recent cancer survivor as well. Joe has joined the Stairwell Project team, performing is a number of spaces particularly the day treatment ward on level 4 at RBWH.

UPDATE:

It is with real sadness that we report that Joe C Fan lost is battle with cancer and passed away on Sunday morning, February 18 at the Royal Brisbane and Womens’ Hospital. He was farewelled from the Mount Thompson memorial gardens on February 29. We will miss him, his presence and music and offer to Ainslie Plumb and is parents and sister our most sincere condolences.

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Support us

The Stairwell Project is a hospital based program of live music performed for staff, patients and visitors by professional musicians. The program will continue to become sustainable and expand its profound impact by donations and grants from benefactors, sponsors, supporters, sales of recordings and government grants. Funds raised are allocated to musicians fees - 85% - with 15% for administration, curation and marketing . You can donate via our GoFundMe page by clicking on the DONATE button below. Thank you most sincerely in advance. Peter Breen/Founder & Curator.

DONATE

PHILANTHROPISTS

We are looking for philanthropists to make annual sponsorship donations to assist us in the growth and sustainability of this project. If this “strikes a chord” please contact us.

stairwellproject1@gmail.com

Our Mission

The mission of The Stairwell Project is to work with hospital staff, patients and their families in order to provide professional musicians who will bring a calming musical presence into the hospital wards, foyers and public spaces as “musicians in hospitals”. Our work revolves around re-imagining clinical spaces and re-imagining clinical practice for staff, patients, families and friends.
***Our goals:***
1. To provide a new and positive addition to clinical practice, clinical spaces, staff morale and patient well being.
2. To audition and interview all prospective musicians before appointment.
3. To pay each musician’s performance hourly costs at the current recommended rate in consultation with each musician.
4. To develop a “Musicians in Hospitals” career pathway module in association with Tertiary Institutions including the Queensland Conservatorium .
5. To engage in ongoing assessment and research around our presence, participation and practice of “sound care”.
6. To expand the project into Mental Health, Aged and Palliative Care.

Our Impact

Since 2015 we have impacted hundreds of staff, patients and the walk-by public with our performances at the Royal Brisbane and Womens’ Hospital [RBWH] St Vincent’s Hospital [ Kangaroo Point] and Holy Spirit Northside. We are growing the musicians in hospitals concept as an idea that seeks to work with staff and patients to reimagine the clinical spaces and reimagine clinical practice - with live music performed in situ with professionally trained musicians. The performing musicians have been impacted and they share stories around patients they have played for, families who have spoken to them and staff who have felt uplifted. This has formed part of their evolution and growth as persons and musicians. As this level of caring can bring deep emotional and spiritual affects, supervision is provided by the Curator and other experienced musicians as part of our our policy of care for the team. This support and mentoring features as a key element in our policy and procedures as we plan for growth and development.

40+

Thousand Dollars Raised

Since 2015 we have raised over $40,000 which has funded musician’s fees. This has been through Crowd Funding Platforms Pozible, Go-Fund Me, MyGiving Circle, PayPalGiving Fund, regular donors and grants from the RBWH Foundation, Cancer Care Services and St Vincent’s Health. In 2021 The Stairwell Project was funded by Arts Queensland, the Gaming Community Benefit Fund and Westfield Carindale Local Hero. Post COVID-19 our annual budget for 2021 - 2023 is $150,000 as we expand our program hours, musicians on site and new research into the effect of our program. Please seriously consider partnering with us as a financial supporter.

6+

Years Serving communities

We have been performing at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital and St Vincent’s Hospital Kangaroo Point and Chermside since 2015. At November 2021 there were 13 musicians rostered each fortnight to perform in wards and public spaces in these three hospitals.

10+

THOUSAND PEOPLE IMPACTED

It is difficult to put a figure on how many people have been impacted by The Stairwell Project. They include the musicians, hospital staff, patients, patients’ families and the hundreds who walk by in the main foyers of the 3 hospitals. We do know, however, that since 2015 we have provided 1900 +hours of live music at RBWH and St Vincent’s and that we have been approached by a range of media outlets to tell our story .

Stairwell Stories

L to R: Maddi [Flute] Bart [Harp] Ian [Guitar] Steph [Voice] - St John’s Cathedral

STORY 1

The good people at St John’s Cathedral [ Brisbane] offered us a concert space in their regular free monthly Cathedral concert series on November 7, 2019. Pre concert blues are non-existent - maybe - for Maddi [Flute], Bart[Harp] , Ian [Guitar] & Steph [Voice]. Did you know that performance anxiety is a real issue for many musicians? You would not have known it about these musicians on the day.

STORY 5

Dr Andrea Vocaturo in the foyer of Level 4, Joyce Tweddell Building, Cancer Care Services Day Treatment Ward, RBWH.

Andrea Vocaturo on June 3, 2021

Just a quick one to let you how today went…

As I was playing outside the foyer at Level 4, a lady saw me and said: ‘I was trying to figure out where the music came from…I didn’t expect it to be live music, it sounds really nice!’

A staff member walked passed me and she offered me a coffee (she was carrying a tray with 3 coffees). I told her that the coffee must have been for someone else, but she replied that she ordered two for herself, so she kindly gave me one of her coffees and then thanked me for playing music.

Many patients inside the ward thanked me or gave me some words of appreciation such as ‘good work mate’ , ‘doing a great job’ , and ‘sounds beautiful’.

A nurse asked me if I knew any Segovia (Michael has been spoiling them with lots of classical gems I guess) and I started playing one of Villa Lobos Etude N.1 and I said: ‘that’s as close as I’ll ever get!” She smiled and replied ‘sounds pretty good to me’.

Finally just before I finished, a lady stopped by to thank me for playing such lovely music. Despite seeming distressed, she gave me a big and warm smile while she made her remark.

Story 6

story 2

Tsoof Baras with the calming tones of the remarkable Hand Pan in the walkway between the Ned Hanlon building and the Joyce Tweddell [Cancer Care Services]building RBWH, October 2019.

L to R: Locky, John, Ian, Michael, Andrea

story 3

The day that the ABC 7.30 Report came to the RBWH to capture something of our story for a wider audience. Ready for filming and to disperse around the hospital L to R: Lachlan Hawkins [ Hand Pan] John Reeves[ Jazz Piano Accordion] Ian Ahles [ Guitar] Dr Michael Knopf [ Guitar] Dr Andrea Vocaturo [ Guitar] November 14, 2019.

story 4

Dr Michael Knopf at St Vincent’s Hospital, Kangaroo Point after the return to The Stairwell Project after COVID-19 [May, 2021.]

I play music in three space here: Near the Cafe in reception - on level one at Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy (pictured) and in Palliative Care.

Starting the day at 9 am, a visiting lady had coffee and a bite to eat in the cafe. Her back was to me when I started in the adjoining hall space. When she had finished, she came out smiling and told me that the music had changed her day and had made her feel like she had stepped out of "here" and had gone "there". She thanked me with some enthusiasm and made her way to the lift to go upstairs.

Then up to Palliative Care where a staff member asked me to play outside the room of an elderly patient who likes music. His son was there and sat whilst I played in the hallway. Other family members for other patients pass by listening. Suddenly a woman in her 60s stopped to say how her son had played guitar for her mother who had passed away, I guess recently. As she spoke she fought back tears and grabbed my left arm with some feeling. I couldn't say much more than "that's so wonderful" and smile at her sharing her tender and apparently fragile thoughts. I always thank the people who stop to chat and offer their thanks- It is good for us to hear each other in these wonderful healing moments.

Nicole Tate performs in the foyer atrium of the RBWH on one of the harps previously owned by the late Brisbane music icon, Donald Hall

You Can Make Some Noise Workshop pilot in 2022 with musician mentors Joe Rabjohns, Danny Widdicombe and Kieran Stevenson. With young cancer patients from Brisbane Metro North Cancer Services and working in the youth dedicated Sony You Can Centre [ RBWH] these workshops worked on developing lyrics and melodies that grow out of the experience of these young patients’ experience of cancer. These workshops will re-start in July 2023 with coordinators/mentors Danny Widdicombe Topology musicians - Jade and John.

Our Programs

CAREER PATHWAYS FOR EMERGING MUSICIANS

QUEENSLAND CONSERVATORIUM

In 2019 conversations were begun with Professor Peter Luff, Dr Michael Knopf and Peter Breen around the possibility of internships in 2020. TBC

media - recordings, blogs, socials.

The Stairwell Project has a strong presence on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Dr Michael Knopf has recorded[ 2019] “Idyll” a record dedicated to The Stairwell Project and available via stairwellproject1@gmail.com

YOU CAN MAKE SOME NOISE is a new initiative by Founder/Curator Peter Breen. The Sony You Can Centre at RBWH in the Joycce Tweddell Building was developed and built by Sony around 2019 in collaboration wtih Cancer Care Services and Metro North Health in Brisbane as a chill out space for young adults [15-25] with cancer. YCMSN brings young professional musicians to work with interested young people to explore their lived experieince of cancer by writing lyrics and melodies to record and perform. Two workshops have been run in 2022.

RESEARCH

Two officially approved research projects have been conducted at RBWH and St Vincent’s in 2019.

Ms Kristy Apps Honours[First Class] BSocWk Thesis around the impact of The Stairwell Project under the title: “Less Concert More Caress” was completed in April, 2019.

Read The Report

Dr Margaret Mcallister [ University of Central Queensland] research into the impact of The Stairwell Project at St Vincent’s was completed in October, 2019.

Read The Report

“

July, 2019

“There were quite a few passing comments such as wonderful, beautiful and thank you. In front of the cafe one gentleman lent towards me to say that because of me he had to have a coffee (so that he could sit and listen). One staff member blew me a kiss as she returned to work.”

Source / Dr Michael Knopf, Guitarist [ Tuesdays] RBWH and St Vincent’s

THE TEAM

John Reeves [Piano Accordion], Bart Seaton-Said [Harp], Maddi Goodwin [Flute], Michael Knopf [Guitar], Lynette Lancini [Keyboard/Percussion], Lucy Reeves [Harp], Andrea Vocaturo [Guitar], John Varney [Double Bass], Jordan Brodie [Guitar], Tsoof Baras [ Hand Pan] Mal Wood [ Trumpet]

We wish to acknowledge with great sadness the passing of our dear friend, outstanding educator and harpist Donald Hall who performed with us in the foyer of the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital from 2016 - apart from COVID-19 interruptions - until his death from cancer in RBWH Cancer Ward 6AS in January 2021. Rest in Peace Donald.

[ Photo Credit: Anthony Anderton]

Peter Breen MA, BTh, ARMIT, MIR is the Co-Founder/Chair of Jugglers Art Space Inc and the Founder/Curator of The Stairwell Project. Trained in Medical Radiography, Theology and Creative Arts Therapies he is a practicing artist and is deeply committed to working alongside clinicians, patients and musicians to see the re-imagining of clinical spaces and practice through the presence of professional performing musicians. His dream is to see that what has grown and evolved through The Stairwell Project becomes a highly valued and permanent practice in hospitals around Australia.

[ Studio Photo: Peter McGhie]

Get Involved

The best way to be involved in The Stairwell Project is to make a donation towards the project’s ongoing development, vision, growth and health and to achieve our $150,000 annual budget [ 2020 - 2022] as we envision for sustainability and expansion into Aged, Mental Health and Palliative Care over the next 5 years. If you are a professional Conservatorium/Tertiary trained musician with an interest in what we are doing, please send us an email so that we can begin to talk about possibilities.

professional musician opportunities

If you are interested in being part of The Stairwell Project, and you have Conservatorium/Tertiary training please contact the Curator via stairwellproject1@gmail.com with an expression of interest and include your CV plus a link to your website including recent recordings and the name of at least one referee. We require an onsite audition. Musicians with specialties in handpan, harp, guitar, voice, viola, cello, keyboard and flute are encouraged to apply.

Make a Donation

The Stairwell Project engages professional musicians and remunerates them at the current award rate and is looking for enthusiastic supporters who will walk with us and share our vision and mission to bring live music into hospitals and add this new level of care to clinical practice. All donations, sponsorship and grants are allocated to our current projects at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and St Vincent’s Hospital [ Kangaroo Point].

REMUNERATION: $70 /hr

Harpists, Double Bass: $80/hr

SUPERANNUATION: 10.5%

HOURS/WEEK 40

ANNUAL BUDGET: $120,000

All musicians have a personal public liability requirement.

The Stairwell Project Musicians

2021

Bart seaton - said

BMus [Hons], BD [Hons]

Harpist

As an accomplished harpist and Queensland Conservatorium graduate, Bart has been part of the Stairwell team since early 2016. His performances at RBWH include regular Fridays [with flutist Maddi Goodwin making up Duo Faun] in Cancer Ward 6AS. He has performed regularly with Stairwell in St Vincent’s Kangaroo Point and Holy Spirit Northside.

[ Studio Photo: Peter McGhie]

Maddi Goodwin

BMus, AMusA, MMus [Flute] MMus[Picolo]

Flutist

As a flutist with a significant CV including two academic performance Masters, Maddi has performed with Stairwell since 2018. Before COVID-19 and a new baby [ 2020] she has performed in Duo Faun with Bart in RBWH 6AS and at St Vincent’s Kangaroo Point. We are very excited that she plans to return to performance in June, 2021.

[Studio Photo: Peter McGhie ]

duo faun

Maddi Goodwin and Bart Seaton-Said

Studio Photo: Peter McGhie

20_12_07_Michael Knopf small for signature[10].jpg

Dr Michael knopf

BMus [Hons], DMA

Composer/Guitarist/Educator

Michael joined the Stairwell team in October 2018 and since has been a passionate performer and presence in all three hospitals but particularly in the day treatment ward of Cancer Care Services RBWH. He is a regular social media reporter of his experiences with staff and patients.

[ Studio Photo: Peter McGhie]

LYNETTE LANCINI

BA, DipEd, AMusA[Piano]

Keyboardist, Percussionist, Recorder player

Lynette joined Stairwell in September 2018. She composes and creates from a space where languorous intuition, harmonic playfulness, and melodic lyricism can be felt in equal measure. Through her creative output she seeks to track and symbolise the felt sense and rhythms of human experiencing. She currently performs on keys, recorder and percussion in the Walkway at RBWH.

[ Studio Photo: Peter Mc Ghie]

Dr andrea vocaturo

DMA, MMusArts, BMus

Guitarist

Andrea has been with The Stairwell Project since 2019 and has read and understood the sense of what we are doing and what he and his playing can bring to the staff, patients and visitors at the RBWH Cancer Care Services Day Treatment ward.

John Reeves

BMus [Hons]

Piano

Piano Accordion

Alexander Technique Practitioner

Music on the stairs in bed

The stairs play songs

On hand pans.

Cancer pain

Takes a break

While bosa nova runs

Around the walls.

Staff members smile with

lighter lifted steps;

Flutes and harps evoking

Irish glint;

Guitar virtuosos almost

Unnoticed

On a chair

Against the foyer wall play something you would

Pay money for at QPAC or the Jazz club.

An accordion

- Not on its own –

makes us feel as if

we are on the Riviera!

A mixed concocted keyboard has secrets of its own

While Bach flows down the concrete cathedral stairs

Through young throats

to lullaby the angst

and bases plucking blues fill spaces with sly smiles.

Hope is released for moments

in days

fear

fog

forgetting

and frustration.

There is a change

In spaces most used to

these anxieties with

dark weights joined into

committed compassion’s

skilled attention to diagnostic endlessness.

Heaven visits to touch a soul or two

And disappears in a mist of

Joy suspended for a while.

lachlan hawkins

BMus [Hons]

Percussionist, Hand Pan Player

Lachlan [ Locky] has been part of Stairwell since late in 2015 and through his passion for the project and handpan skills has made significant impacts on hundreds of people particularly in the stairwell at RBWH. Through his enthusiasm for the project he has been a conduit for other musicians joining the team.

[ Studio Photo: Peter McGhie]

Jordan Brodie

BMus

Guitarist

Jordan joined the team in March 2020 navigating COVID-19 lockdowns and a cancelled NZ record launch tour. He brings a strong lyrical joy-filled lightness to the spaces.

Lucy reeves

B.Mus.(Hons),M.Mus.St.

Harpist

John Varney

PhD

Double Bass