50 MusicWeek 04.05.12 FEATUREINDUSTRYPROJECTS
AIM Chief Alison Wenham recently launched a CD Library in memory of late husband Nick at London’s Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability, giving patients access to over 3,000 albums. The initiative was widely supported by the industry, with music donations across both major and indie labels - plus hardware donated by Tesco and distribution services looked after by Graham Lambdon of MSE Group. Alison now plans to open more libraries in hospitals across the country. Here, she describes why she’s proud to have established the library - and why it’s so important to the hospital’s patients…
A SIMPLE GIFT, CHANGING LIVES O
PROJECTS BY ALISON WENHAM
n Thursday April 19, with the generous support of Tesco, The MSE Group and all the UK record companies, a unique new
facility was launched at the Royal Hospital of Neuro-disability in Putney. A brand new CD lending library containing 3,000 CDs is now available to all the 240 patients who are long-stay residents at this very special hospital. It is called the Wenham CD Library, after Nick Wenham. Everyone reading Music Week knows they’re very
lucky to be working in this industry and we are sometimes understandably a bit blasé about our ability to listen to all the music we like or see any band we choose, but not everyone is as lucky. A very few people find themselves in such a
hospital as the RHN, and once there, it usually becomes their permanent home. They leave behind a world where they can control their lives, professions, homes and families – ‘normal life’ - to one where they are massively dependent on the support of this very special hospital. It is the leading national hospital for people with severe and complex brain injury caused by accident, injury or disease. We came across this hospital when my husband
was a patient there after a massive brain haemorrhage in 2000. He died in 2010, but in the 10 years he lived, he enjoyed a great quality of life, sharing his love of music with others in the hospital and we have an enormous amount to thank them for. The idea for the CD lending library was to
address the fact that the patients had no access to a comprehensive range of music. For a start the patients are aged from 18 to 80. Local radio stations and others made regular donations of CDs but inevitably it was a patchwork of random titles. Being able to provide a full range of music so that everyone could once again enjoy his or her favourite music and discover more was a simple goal but one with massive benefits. You may wonder why we didn’t install up to the
minute new technology – a Spotify service, for example. Well, it isn’t that simple, and old technology works so much better for patients who cannot move or communicate well. The library will be open every day, patients and their carers come and look at the range, the catalogue is computerised so even for patients with little or no communication, using the unique eye-gaze technology developed by the hospital they will be able to find the artists they like. The library is a simple gift from the industry
and I want to thank David Joseph, Nick Gatfield, Andria Vidler, Chris Ancliff, Rob Salter,
RHN chief Angus Somerville and Alison Wenham at the launch of the Wenham CD Library
www.musicweek.com
Paul Bursche (Sony) with Daniel Jones (Head of Recreation & Leisure, RHN)
ABOVE/RIGHT Support Industry figures turned out in force at the library’s launch
Graham Lambdon, Pete Thompson, Michel Lambot and Jonathan Morrish for their support and generosity. We would like to roll out the concept to other
long-stay hospitals – so please don’t give up on the CD just yet!
Philippa Jayanathan (director of Long Term Care, RHN), Geoff Coyne (Lead Chaplain, RHN) and Simon Wills – director, Absolute Marketing and Solutions
THE MUSIC ‘IT’S A REMINDER OF GREAT THINGS’
Nick Wenham’s former colleague Jonathan Morrish on the library’s opening: “I was a colleague of Nick’s at CBS/ Sony Music when he was there in the EIghties and Nineties and his untimely death in 2010 served, and still serves, as a timely notice that none of this is a rehearsal. “It was impossible not to like Nick so,
given his condition, it was always especially wonderful to see him at the regular company reunions which have taken place over the years since those halcyon times when he appeared on top form and genuinely embraced the atmosphere of good-time reminiscence! “Music is indeed undeniably valuable. It changes mood, behaviour. It creates
atmosphere. It can energise and stimulate and can also be a form of therapy. Nick clearly understood that both in the context of his own life but importantly also for others. “Back then, as now, we are privileged,
as Joni Mitchell sung, ‘to stoke the star- maker machinery behind the popular song’ and Nick was a consummate professional – a great stoker! But of course, in this wonderful business, the only thing that lasts is indeed the music. “Therefore it is more than fitting, not
just for all his former colleagues at Sony Music and later at Island but for all the industry, that this library of music in his name will serve as a permanent reminder
and legacy of him and the great things that we can do working together. And also how precious are life and music.”
BELOW From left: Jonathan Morrish (PPL), Sal Connolly, Daniel Jones and Alison Wenham
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