A Musical Mission to Uplift Communities through the Therapy of Sound

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Tiffany Zhang. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light. 

Tiffany Zhang, a talented young pianist from Katy, TX, has channeled her passion for music into a powerful force for good, dedicated to spreading joy and addressing inequality. Since the age of 10, Tiffany has performed at senior centers, touching the lives of countless residents. Then, in 2017, she co-founded Spark of Live Music (SOLM), a nonprofit organization that provides live music performances and music therapy to schools, nursing homes, hospitals and rehabilitation centers. Over the past seven years, SOLM has hosted more than 150 performances, bringing comfort and happiness to nearly 4,000 seniors. 

Even during the height of the pandemic, Tiffany ensured that the seniors in quarantine, including Alzheimer’s patients, could continue to experience the joy of live music. She organized monthly Zoom concerts, allowing isolated residents to find peace and joy through the healing power of music. Tiffany’s dedication has not only been about delivering performances but also addressing disparities in healthcare access. When she noticed inequality in the resources available to senior care facilities in minority and low-income areas, Tiffany partnered with musical therapists to bring much-needed therapeutic services to these underserved communities. 

The work of SOLM has reached far beyond senior care facilities. The organization has hosted three charity concerts, raising over $8,000 for Texas Children’s Hospital and other nonprofits. These charity efforts underscore Tiffany’s mission to use music as a means to both raise awareness and directly impact those in need.  

In addition to her musical outreach, Tiffany developed a unique curriculum that incorporates psychology and music, teaching over 50 students how to manage stress and sadness using music as a coping mechanism. The program proved highly effective, with 75% of students reporting an increased understanding of the importance of mental health and over 70% learning new strategies to handle stress. 

Tiffany’s passion for mental health advocacy also extends to her podcast, Empathy Gaps, where she interviews professors, music therapists and mental health specialists to raise awareness and destigmatize mental health issues. Read on to learn more about Tiffany’s work and mission. 

Tell us about your volunteer role. 

I’m the president and co-founder of Spark of Live Music, a nonprofit organization that aims to combat healthcare inequalities through three main ways, all related to music therapy. First of all, we play music at low-income senior housing in the local community, which helps the seniors in these communities receive help with their mental health. Music has a profound effect on senior mental health. Second, we give free music therapy resources to low-income seniors in collaboration with board certified music therapists. We typically bring these music therapists to the community, and they lead the seniors through a session. Then, staff can help them access the resources we have on our website as a follow-up.  

Third, we teach students of all socioeconomic classes how to use music therapy to relieve stress and sadness, especially during the rise of the mental health crisis where there are so many unprecedented rates of depression and anxiety. We teach a mental health and music curriculum we developed in collaboration with professional music therapists.  

What inspired you to get started with this initiative? 

I’ve been playing piano for a really long time. I started when I was 5 and I’ve always had a passion for music. I’ve noticed how music can be used to benefit both musicians and listeners. When I was in third grade, I started performing under another volunteer organization. I started going around the local community and performing for the residents in senior homes. But throughout my time performing under that organization, I noticed there were many differences in the senior facilities. Some had many resources for the residents while others were far more lacking in more resources.  

From that volunteer experience, I decided to start SOLM to combat that inequality in senior housing, and also help the mental health of the seniors in low-income facilities. I always notice how much the seniors light up, not just at the music being played but also that someone is sacrificing their time to come volunteer.  

What’s been the most rewarding part of your work? 

There have been many parts – just doing service work is so impactful and has inspired me to do even more for the community. But I’d say that the best moment I’ve had – and this may sound counterintuitive – was during the COVID pandemic, where everything was shut down during quarantine. During this dark period, a group of musicians and I decided to host a virtual concert for people in the community, to simply listen to some music.  

I was in middle school and we didn’t have much experience with marketing, advertising or even hosting events. Our expectations were low, but on that day, about 100 people attended from all over the world, including Asia and Europe! That concert affirmed to us the power of music and how music can really bring us out of dark times and unite us all.

What are your favorite types of music to play? 

I play pop music and classical music, but my favorite is when I get to do a duet with my friend of a 70’s or 80’s song that the seniors like listening to. It’s wonderful to see the positive reaction we get from them when we play songs they cherished earlier in their lives. 

What are your long-term plans or goals for the organization? 

Obviously, healthcare inequality and access to mental health care is a pretty universal issue. SOLM’s goal include expanding past our current community – we’re mainly impacting the Houston area – so we want to grow past that and provide music therapy services elsewhere. We see ourselves as being part of the fight to provide equal healthcare access, because obviously this isn’t something one organization can do alone. 

Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about? 

It’s important for people to volunteer with issues that they’re passionate about, because it’s important to have a more socially equal world where people have the same access to opportunities. In order to create a better world, I believe we all need to participate in advocating for and providing more resources for anyone who is disadvantaged in some way. 

Any advice for people who want to start volunteering? 

From my own experience, I’d say don’t give up! And don’t think that an issue is too big – or too niche – for you to help solve. I had to reach out to many, many music therapists, and found that many were not necessarily available. It was frustrating at the beginning when I couldn’t bridge the music therapy gap. But then I was finally able to find a music therapist to help us with our mission, and it grew from there. So my advice is to put yourself out there! Your hard work will pay off.  

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Tiffany? Find local volunteer opportunities.