About Harmonic Health NZ Limited
Harmonic Health is a company that has been established to enrich the lives of people through the multiple benefits of singing.
Founder, CEO, Dr Julie Jackson-Gough has had a lifetime of experience in singing and teaching singing and leading singing. She had her first choir at age 16, who toured from Christchurch throughout the North Island of New Zealand. Adults managed the choir, but Julie trained and accompanied them. (that was 40 years ago)
Many choirs have followed, along with a full singing and piano studio in Blenheim, during the time that her children were born.
Also during this time Julie achieved recognition in New Zealand for her own singing, reaching the finals of the Mobil Song Contest in 1982, New Zealand’s most prestigious singing event.
In the late 1980s she started running workshops for people who did not think that they could sing. It is from this 20 years of experience that she asserts with confidence: if you can speak you can sing.
While taking graduate study in Florida, part of her responsbility from the University was to take the Tallahassee Senior singers, and this sensitised her to the capabilities of such people. Despite being in their 70′s and 80′s they still had lovely singing voices.
Julie joined the Music Education faculty of the University of Waikato Faculty of Education in 1996, and completed her PhD in 2003
In 2005 Dr Julie was invited to Waikeria Prison to initiate a choir contest for the prisoners, and this event was so successful that it was repeated the following year. Unfortunately the senior administrator at the prison who had invited her, left in 2006 and the contest was not held again.
In 2007 Dr Julie approached the Hilda Ross Retirement Village, which is close to the University campus, about starting up a Glee Club for the independent people of the village. The results over the following four years have been astounding, leading Julie to accept redundancy from the University to take these results to other retirement villages for the good of their: physical health, mental health, spiritual health, identity, value, responsibility, and promotion of the village in the local and regional community.
In 2013 Matt Jackson, Julie's son joined the company as the Commercial Manager to deploy Singing for Seniors on the back of the success of the RVA Bay Audiology Festival of Choirs Programme.
After working closely in the sector for many years Harmonic Health identified a key breakdown - music was entertainment, and not being utilised to provide a heath benefit. Singing for Seniors was created to fill a need to provide villages with a strategic approach to singing and wellness in a cost effective manner.
Prior Experience
Choirs :
Regeneration Singers, Christchurch 1969 – 1970
New Life Singers, Blenheim 1979 – 1980
Blenheim Choral Society 1980 – 1984
First fifteen (selected choir at Marlborough Girls College) 1979
Taupo Choral Society 1987 – 1992
Tauhara Consort (selected choir at Tauhara College, Taupo) 1986 – 1992
Tallahassee Senior Singers (Tallahassee Florida) 1992 – 1995
Hamilton Civic Choir 1996 – 2000
Waikato Youth Choir 1998 – 2002
Hamilton Chorale 2007 - 2014
Hilda Ross Glee Club 2007 - 2011
8 – 80 Festival Choir, Hamilton Gardens Summer Arts Festival 2010, 2011
Vision Forest Lake Senior Singers 2011- 2012
Studio Singing Teacher
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Blenheim 1979 – 85
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Taupo 1985 – 1992
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Tallahassee, Florida, USA. 1992 – 1995
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Hamilton (New Zealand) 1996 -
University Teaching: (Dr Julie teaches the teachers)
University of Waikato 1996 – 2010
Workshops for Singers: From 1989
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Refresher for singers
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Working with un-confident singers,
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Church choirs,
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Prison units,
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Community choirs,
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Competition Adjudication includes:
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South Auckland Competitions Society: Singing , instrumental , and piano competitions 2007
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New Plymouth Singing and instrumental 2004
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South Auckland Competitions Society: Singing competitions 2003
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Napier Competitions society: Singing competitions 2006 and 2000
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Te Awamutu Competitions Society Singing Competitions 1998 and 2002
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Blenheim Competitions Society Singing, Instrumental and piano competitions 1987 and 1998
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Hawera Competitions Society Singing 1988
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Wanganui Competitions Society Singing 1982
Qualifications
PhD: Florida State University 2003
Dissertation: Musical Events among four-year-old children in naturalistic contexts, within selected New Zealand Kindergartens
M.M.: Florida State University 1993
Choral conducting
B.Mus: Canterbury University (Christchurch, New Zealand) 1974
General Music study
F.T.C.L. Trinity College London 1982
Singing performance
L.R.S.M. Royal Schools of Music 1975
piano teaching
Dip Theol: Melbourne College of Divinity 1983
General Theological studies
Dip Tch: Christchurch Teachers College 1974
Secondary teaching; Music
Testimonials
Harry: “I want to thank you for igniting my singing ability and motivating me to attend rehearsals regularly.”
(Harry is a Glee Club member who had not sung in church all his life until recently, and his wife is now thrilled that he sings with confidence.)
Feedback after the Hilda Ross Glee Club entertained at the Edmund Hillary Retirement Village Auckland
Our concert at Edmund Hillary was a most enjoyable time. The opportunity to show how the Glee Club has given us a chance to improve and develop our singing and performance skills, along with the way to show how beneficial music can be especially at our age! We love to sing together, and the well-being, & happiness that it engenders was evident on our trip home & we sang most of the way. Thanks to Dr Julie’s direction I fell we have improved and benefited in most aspects of our lives – the fun & camaraderie is a bonus. The Edmund Hillary people remarked on the obvious enjoyment we seemed to project.
My opinion on Singing of Glee Club 4th October at Edmond Hillary Village is: I thought we sang with great gusto & put a lot of feeling into the singing. May have been because our numbers were down (15 out of nearly 30 singers made the trip) or the size of the venue in which we sang. All in all I reckon it was a good performance
Our performance? Brilliant, everyone singing their hearts out. I am sorry the men’s item was cut because they sang so well during our combine pieces. Each one of the girls introducing the coming items spoke very well. I enjoyed Hazels impromptu comments on ‘Ill wind’ (Mozart’s Horn concerto in Eb, with words by Flanders and Swann, Hazel didn’t like it), she echoed my own feelings too. Good on you Hazel. The trip up and back was enjoyed by all in our little van. Everyone agreed that it was a memorable day out. We all arrived home happy chappies. So glad to have Julie as our tutor and song leader. Audrey
I felt that we rose to the occasion and sang out well. We need more male voices to round out the sound. The selection was well received by the audience, with many singing along.
I felt that we acquitted ourselves well on Monday at Edmund Hilary.
Moira
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“Julie – You are spectacular! Your energy, ability to connect and your joy are contagious. Thank you so very much for your fine work with our students” Jenny Ferrier-Kerr
“I really enjoyed working with you Julie. You were always cheerful, positive and willing. I valued your warmth and heart especially when I got bogged in detail. Best love and wishes for the future” Clare Henderson
“Thank you so much for all the fun and enjoyment you have given to our Glee Club all this time, and because of you, we have given to others.” Val Ferguson
Julie is the Musical Director and conductor for Hamilton Chorale. She works very hard on vocal training and at extending the musical knowledge of choir members. She also places emphasis on the enjoyment and the health benefits of laughter and singing, for all age groups but particularly so with older people. Her studies on Gerontology have greatly added to Julie’s skills as a choir leader.
Rell Sumner,
Choir President
March 17th 2011
Julie Hi
I would like to thank you for last week’s choir practice. When I arrived I was just so tired, I had had a hectic week with long hours and, at my age (72 years) I was really exhausted. When I arrived home just after 6.00 pm I did not want to go out again. But, if everyone thought that way, there would be no one there and also, I really enjoy singing.
I did not think I would be able to concentrate properly. When I returned to my car after choir practice, I felt on a high! I could have gone on “singing all night”! Thank you, you encourage us and teach us and make choir practice fun! You have given this choir a really lovely “tone” so that people find us easy to listen to and want to hear more. You have such a variety of songs and atmospheres that it is never boring, as can be when some choir sing the same thing for the whole concert.
When I returned home, I did not need a pill to take away my headache, as the headache had gone. The heavy feeling of tiredness over my eyes had gone and I felt invigorated and full of energy.
You have the ability to explain in simple language, and demonstrate music and sound, so that we can learn to sing correctly and beautifully. It is so much fun to have you, Julie! The time goes so quickly. We leave singing and humming as we go.
Julie – thank you
Yvonne G King
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I can vouch for the fact that singing does improve our health and wellbeing.
Most people in the senior age group have a disability of some sort. Personally I have had two chronic pain conditions for 50 plus years, and lost some lung capacity after surgery for cancer. In our Glee Club we hve a lady who is 98% blind, and another who is also legally blind. One uses braille and the other learns the words from CDs provided by our tutor Julie. Another member has Parkinsons, and say that singing helps her speech.
The voice and breathing exercises are a particular help for ex-smokers and asthmatics.
The exercises are noisy and fun. I feel like a child again, with the freedom to make faces and loud strange sounds. With Julie’s humorous guidance we find that we can reach the high notes.
You don’t need to be able to read music and the odd “croak’ is lost among the other voices.
I find that I remember the words more easily when sung than when spoken.
Julie says that ‘if you can talk you can sing’ and it is so true, and with Julie’s patient humorous tuition we have many laughs with a sense of achievement at the end. I may have started our practice on a painful “downer” of a day but finish on a high, wishing that it was a daily event.
I wish Julie every success in extending her work in this field. Many people can gain from her expertise. Not only the singers, but the audience who come to enjoy our efforts and realise that they too could sing along and reap the benefits.
Pauline Dixon: Glee Club Librarian
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I have know Julie Jackson-Gough since 2008. Her commitment to music is incredible. I only know of her abilities on piano, singing, conducting, and recording. Going to one of her classes is very rewarding. I can go feeling ‘ho why do I have to’ and come home again feeling wonderful. As we are all 60 – 90 we are not always feeling so great. I now look forward each week to our practice, as we know we shall have a laugh, which is very good for breathing and posture. I hope we continue to have her, and in the future she may be able to get more work in this field.
Hannah Wheeler Hilda Ross Glee Club member
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Singing in the Glee Club has been very beneficial for me. I have a chronic lung condition, which has always put me off singing in choirs. However Julie’s encouragement and tuition in deep breathing exercises has enabled me to control my breathing in order to sing. Indeed I have also had the courage to join two other choirs! Another plus is the opportunity to get to know others in the village with similar interests, and the light-hearted 3/4hr at choir seems all too short. Laughter fills the lungs with oxygen (just as singing does) and we do a lot of both and can’t wait for the next week’s session.
Elizabeth Carlisle associate accompanist. Hilda Ross Glee Club
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6/6/11
Dear Julie
I write to extend our thanks for your enthusiasm, and encouragement in the establishment of our Senior Singers group 18 months ago. From the time of your visit in 2009 the group has grown “like a mushroom”, from 8 – 12, to 35 dedicated members (including 4 basses and 3 tenors).
You will be pleased to hear the choir received the Award for Arts and Culture in the Waipa/Trustpower Community Services awards recently, together with a framed certificate and a generous cheque, which has been a lifeline, financially.
There have been great reports of health benefits, particularly of course respiratory problems & memory/concentration enhancement.
We appreciate your participation in the founding of a most enjoyable musical & social activity for older people in our community.
Sincere Regards
Glenys Waterhouse F.T.C.L.
Director
Regards also from Helen Lloyd (piano)