Kate Kurotani

Among the cities in Minnesota, Rochester is known to have a growing and lively music scene. From indie artists to group gigs and award-winning performances, Rochester has served as a hub for rising performers and music enthusiasts in Southeastern Minnesota. Rochester is also the home of the world-renowned hospital, the Mayo Clinic, which has been known to meet the pressing needs of modern healthcare through scientific innovation and high-quality patient care. Mayo Clinic offers a variety of creative outlets for patients such as music therapy led by board-certified music therapists who work with healthcare providers, patients, and their families to meet their healthcare goals through the Center for Humanities. Besides the clinical care received through healthcare institutions like the Mayo Clinic, humanity has been leaning on music for generations whenever they are faced with traumatic events, such as the September 11 attacks, or grief. Music has been utilized as a complementary treatment option, stimulating the production of hormones in the brain that contribute to enhancing the quality of sleep, mood, and pain control and allowing individuals to connect and communicate with others, enhancing their social and emotional well-being. This project aims to discover the history of the music scene in Rochester, Minnesota. It seeks to unearth whether having the Mayo Clinic established in Rochester created a common theme of “healing” that led to the progression of the music scene in the city, or if the city’s origins of a vibrant music community contributed to the healing of patients in the past decades. Learning about this is significant because it contributes to recognizing the identity of the community as a whole, paving the way for creating informed decisions on community policies and events that could increase the sense of belonging of community members, contributing to a healthier and a well-connected society.