Sacks, O. Musicophilia- Tales of Music and the Brain p. 317-334 A Hypermusical Species: William’s Syndrome. Toronto, Canada. Random House. (2007)
Summary:
In this chapter of his book ‘Musicophilia,’ Oliver Sacks, the renowned physician, author and professor discusses the ongoing interactions he has with children and adults living with William’s Syndrome. Sacks opens the chapter with a writing style that reads like a narrative work. There is a very constant personal touch-his attachment to the children he interacts with is clearly demonstrated. He gives an account of his visit to a summer camp he visits in 1995, in Lenox Massachusetts. There, he spends his time with a group of children and adults varying in ages from eight to forty six years old. He describes these children as all being extraordinarily sociable and inquisitive who greeted him in an incredibly friendly and familiar manner. He describes their appearances; (which have very few differences even with the large age range) they all have wide mouths, upturned noses, small chins, and round eyes he describes as curious and starry. He goes on to describe the individual interactions he has with each. Each of the children have quite a few things in common-most prevalent here is the great attention and love given to art, sound, drama and music. Sacks also discusses the relationship that these children have with a woman named Charlotte; a music therapist who seems to be able to tap into the interests and passions of each of her patients. His accounts of a woman named Gloria seem to encapsulate the most common characteristics of children with this syndrome; “Gloria has a rich soprano voice and can play on the full sized piano accordion almost any song she hears. She has a repertoire of about 2,000 songs....Yet, like most individuals with Williams Syndrome, she cannot add five plus three, nor can she get along independently.” Sacks describes the three main dispositions which are greatly heightened in people with Williams Syndrome. They are the musical, the narrative and the social. Though many of these people have great difficulty in areas of academia and even basic skills, when it comes to these three main areas, they have an incredible ability, and love complete immersion. If there is a stimulus for one of these three dispositions, it is unlikely that they will focus on anything else. Daniel Levitin also visited this camp, and described the experience as such, “Williams Syndrome individuals had an unusually high degree of engagement with music. Music seemed to be not just a very deep and rich part of their lives, but one that was omnipresent; most of them spent a great proportion of the day singing to themselves or playing instruments, even while walking to the mess hall...” Sacks concludes the chapter with a final story of one young woman he met when she was just eight years old. He received a letter from her mother shortly after the young girl Heidi’s, 18th birthday. Her mother described the new job she had found, at a convalescent home where she spent her time playing bingo, painting the fingernails of the patients, getting them coffee, and talking and listening. She had found her ‘calling’ spending her time sharing her joy with these patients, and was truly happy herself.
Reflection:
I was intrigued by this specific chapter of Sacks’ book after I learned about Williams Syndrome just a few months ago. It is a syndrome which, before this class I knew nothing about and it’s incredible that so few people are aware of its existence. Sacks even gives accounts of a young woman with Williams Syndrome who knew nothing of the syndrome until she was in her thirties.
Sacks’ writing style, and his personal accounts touching and genuine. It is extraordinarily clear that he devotes his time and emotional energy to these projects he undertakes. The stories of the willingness of the children to welcome others into their lives is heartwarming. The young girl Heidi is described as once saying to her mother (when told not to talk to strangers) that there are no strangers-only friends. For us and the way we live our lives, that is a statement which we find hard to understand or believe. However, these children have open hearts and just seem to want to share their love of sociability and music with all those whom they meet. I also found it interesting that though people with Williams Syndrome have an acute love of music, it is not true that all those with the disorder have increased musical ability. Some people are unable to sing basic tunes, but this does not, in any way, affect their love of the music. The chapter was moving and executed well-enough information was provided in conjunction with personal stories and anecdotes to give us a substantial picture of these people he describes. The prose take the characters off the page, and it makes them real to the reader, while lessons are learned about this syndrome.
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