Last fall, I began teaching piano at the Riverbrook Residence for women with developmental disabilities in Stockbridge, MA. Riverbrook is a rare and special place—the women there are supported in every dimension of life. I often remind myself of how new this phenomenon is. It has been only a few decades since ABC news reporter, Geraldo Rivera exposed the shockingly inhuman conditions at Willowbrook – an institution for those with mental retardation on Staten Island, NY. In doing so he helped bring this issue into our collective conscience. The care for those with developmental disabilities is, I believe, central to the evolution of humanity as a whole.
While things have generally improved since Rivera’s report in the early 1970’s, Riverbrook stands out as a remarkable place. Because of its uniquely supportive environment, the women trust me, and work closely with me. I, in turn, am discovering a new dimension in my own teaching as I witness them express, through our piano improvisations and group music activities, strikingly individual aesthetic sensibilities. This experience is proving to me that the Authentic Self—that part of us that is beautiful, natural and free—is, indeed, universal and unfettered by any limitation.
In this video, Tanny Labshere, whom I wrote about in my previous post, is playing an improvised duet with me. It will give you a first-hand experience of what I am describing.
