Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) brings music therapy-informed sessions into healthcare and residential facilities through HeartStrings. These sessions have demonstrated extraordinary impact on participants, annually reaching more than 3,200 individuals with disabilities, long-term illness, and assisted-living needs, as well as aging adults with dementia. HeartStrings has been recognized for innovation and excellence by the National Endowment for the Arts, the League of American Orchestras and the International Society for the Arts in Healthcare, and by the Madison Area Rehabilitation Centers as a model community program.

Most recipients of this program are unlikely to ever attend a performance in the concert hall. HeartStrings has uniquely positioned itself to bring meaningful, high-caliber arts experiences directly to participants in comfortable and familiar locations. Partner locations can include state residential treatment facilities, retirement communities, memory care units, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, and resource centers for families who have children with various disabilities, among others.

HeartStrings aims to enhance the quality of life for individuals with special needs. Through regularly-recurring, interactive sessions, the MSO’s Rhapsodie Quartet addresses the physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs of hundreds of individuals each year in a comfortable and familiar setting.

HeartStrings mission statement is as follows:

1) To enhance the quality of life of underserved populations through live, interactive, and exceptional quality musical experiences that are informed by the American Music Therapy Association’s Standards of Practice.

2) To bring meaningful arts experiences directly to participants in a comfortable and
familiar setting.

3) To provide a valuable resource for facilities that serve aging populations, adults with dementia, and individuals with disabilities, or long-term illnesses.

HeartStrings has reached over 3,200 individuals with disabilities, long-term illness, and assisted-living needs, as well as aging adults with dementia since its start in 2006.

Every year since HeartStrings was established, the National Endowment for the Arts has recognized HeartStrings as a leader. HeartStrings has received NEA/ArtWorks awards, including three Access to Artistic Excellence Grants for eight consecutive years. In addition, the Society for the Arts in Healthcare (SAH) with Johnson & Johnson chose HeartStrings from among 320 international programs to receive a three-year grant, recognizing it as an innovative model program that uses art to advance healing and preventative health. Finally, the MSO was one of only two symphonies in the nation to receive the League of American Orchestra's 2008 MetLife Award for Excellence in Community Engagement, and recently received an award from the League of American Orchestras with the Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation.

HeartStrings’ success can be seen in its high-demand throughout the community, with word-of-mouth promotion attracting ongoing requests from potential new partner locations. The MSO manages a wait list to ensure the program continues to reach new partners, as well as return to past partners who request to host the program in subsequent years.