Your favorite singer just announced that he will donate his signed guitar to help alleviate the damage caused by DANA. What you may not know is that Guillermo Giner (Valencia, 1972) is the person who has made it possible. The president and creator of the Valencian foundation Musicians for Healthin collaboration with Los40 journalist Tony Aguilar, has managed to organize the largest solidarity auction of guitars (at the time these lines are written, there are almost 40) whose proceeds will go to the town councils of the towns most affected by the devastation , so that they can purchase essential products.
Because almost a decade ago, Guillermo witnessed firsthand the therapeutic value of music. Then he was a computer scientist and worked remotely from La Fe Hospital, where he took care of his mother during the most difficult time of the colon cancer that ended up taking her. Seeing the effect that the melodies had on his mood moved him inside and he decided to create Musicians for Health, in July 2015. Today, this humanization project is present in 65 hospitals and about 360 social and health centers throughout Spainwhere they perform microconcerts for patients or residents.
—How is the foundation doing at the moment?
—«Musicians for Health» was born and is based in Valencia, where right now we find ourselves in a catastrophic situation that has taken the lives of more than 200 people. In our own foundation we have had three people affected, who could not leave their homes. Until yesterday, we had to carry water and medicine with ropes over the balcony, because the exits were blocked by the piled-up cars. We have visited the senior centers with which we collaborate, and the water has swept the ground floor. It’s horrible. It looks like the setting of a war movie. Given this, we asked ourselves what we could do. There are already NGOs that have millions of members who can donate money, so we thought: let’s unite the hearts of the musicians of Spain before DANA, and we started a campaign to mobilize the musical collective. It’s called “Solidarity Guitars.”
—What does it consist of?
—On the one hand, we have opened a channel for direct financial donations from individuals and companies through a bank account. On the other hand, we have launched a donation of guitars signed by famous musicians for auction.
—How much support have they added?
—We came up with the idea on Friday and by Saturday we already had 10 guitars from prestigious artists. At this moment, we have achieved the support of Antonio Orozco, Ruth Lorenzo, Estopa, Dani Fernández, Beret, Hombres G, Pepe de Arde Bogotá… there are almost 40 prestigious artists, and we continue adding.
—When will the auction be?
—We have contacted several auction houses and, as soon as we have a platform, we will launch the date through www.musicosporlasalud.org/guitarrassolidarias.
—How did Musicians for Health begin its journey?
—No one hits their head one day and decides they are going to build a foundation. Generally, when you dig a little, you always find a personal story behind it. In my case, it was the 11 months I spent taking care of my mother. At some point, the hospital became my home. I got up at 8 in the morning and left at 8 in the afternoon. But no matter what I did, I saw my mother as subdued… She wasn’t like that. One day I asked her if she wanted to listen to music (she was a person who went to the Palau every week), and it was like turning on a light bulb. The music brightened his spirits. That inspired me to play music for other patients and… it worked. The effect was equally positive. This is how the foundation was born. We want to humanize the experience in hospitals and social health centers with live music, played by professionals. We have already trained more than 2,000 in our methodology.
—How have they evolved?
—At first we took people from the conservatory and, you know what? The patients fell asleep. We soon realized that, to connect with the patient and make them fly so that nothing hurts them for a moment, music has to be emotionally meaningful. My mother could like opera, while another woman liked Sabina or Lola Flores. For this reason, our musicians perform songs previously chosen by patients or residents. Before arriving, we pasted the “Order your song” sign on the door. Over the years, we have designed our own methodology based on micro-concerts. We give them in hemodialysis, in chemotherapy rooms, in the psychiatric ward… If they are inside the rooms, the better. Music must reach where people are suffering.
—What does the method consist of?
—In the sessions, we distribute percussion instruments so that they can actively participate. Because music is medicine for the soul, but we have seen that if you also participate, the effect is greater. If you sing, it’s bigger. If you smile, it’s older. If you do it collectively, it is greater. On the other hand, we always follow one rule: the musician never sits down; He moves to create an atmosphere of connection with each patient, as if he were playing only for him or her. This interaction is essential to achieve the benefits we seek.
—What are they?
—Hope, company. The atmosphere is not the same when entering as when leaving a room. Music has a kind of analgesic effect. Yesterday they gave us the results of one of the scientific studies we carried out: in ICU patients we achieved a reduction in spending of between €3,000-5,000 per patient by reducing the length of stay in the unit. At the end of sessions, people can sign our guest book. I am left with a phrase that I read once, and that said: “What good bad times you put us through…” and it is true. We bring good moments to the worst moment of a person’s life. Throughout these years, we have touched the hearts of more than 500,000 people and we are the entity with the largest number of microconcerts in the world, with more than 40,000.