Music for Senior Living Communities

Music can be influential at any age, and it can be especially beneficial for older adults.

Music may support mood and emotional well-being, and some research has explored its relationship with memory and cognitive function. Music played in senior living communities may help to alleviate anxiety, elicit positive memories and emotions, and have a soothing effect.

Different types of senior living homes can have variable requirements when it comes to music, so the type of music can vary. For example, there will be different areas where music is played for different functions.

At a Glance: Music for Senior Living Communities

• Purpose of music: Background music could influence residents’ mood, improve emotional well-being, evoke positive memories, and help create a welcoming environment in senior living communities.
• Setting variation: Different types of senior living homes (independent, assisted, skilled care, memory care) may benefit from customized music strategies based on resident needs and activities.
• Music placement: Background music can be used effectively in common areas such as dining rooms, activity rooms, lounges, lobbies, therapy spaces, and outdoor recreation areas.
• Licensed streaming: Using a licensed commercial music service (like Pandora CloudCover) offers fully licensed background music for covered business use without relying on personal streaming apps.
• Benefits of music: Music played in senior living settings may reduce anxiety, support social engagement, and enhance quality of life for older adults.

Pandora CloudCover offers fully licensed background music for business use. Business-friendly tools like dayparting and audio advertising can help schedule music and audio messaging for different areas and times.

Senior Living Music by Room and Zone

Just as every area in your senior living facility has a specific function, so should the music you share. The right sounds could elevate the space and potentially help orient your residents to time and place. These are good options to explore.

*Information listed in the above table has been verified as of 10/30/2026. Subject to change.

Types of Senior Living Homes That Could Benefit From Music

There are four main types of senior living communities, all of which can benefit from music. These are the main types:

Independent Senior Living Communities

‍Often in the form of apartment complexes, condos, or sprawling “neighborhoods,” independent senior living communities are places where seniors do not require personal assistance or on-site medical care.

Most residents are looking for an environment where they can live around other seniors with similar interests. 

Independent senior living communities can use music played in common areas, such as pools, exercise studios, community centers, restaurants, lobby or reception areas, and religious worship facilities. 

Healthcare is often off-site, and residents will control their own personal living environment.

Assisted Living Facilities

‍There are a wide variety of concepts for assisted communities, ranging from family-type homes to assisted living facilities, adult home campuses, and enriched housing facilities. Residents will require some form of personal assistance or medical care.

These senior living environments can be contained in one building or more than one. Multiple buildings are typically close together and separated by a walkway or a short walk. 

Music can be played to benefit the residents and staff members in the lobby, common areas (such as hallways), administrative offices, community room, game room, pool, exercise area, physical therapy rooms, dining hall/cafeteria, worship facilities, library, and basic health or medical treatment areas.

Skilled Nursing & Intensive Care Facilities

‍This type of senior living community includes nursing homes, convalescent hospitals, and rehabilitation centers. These residents will require some level of constant assistance or monitoring and are unable to live independently.

Music may help soothe the high tension that can arise in these environments. It can be played in mental health and memory care units, administration offices, the lobby, common areas and hallways, community and activity rooms, intensive care units, physical therapy rooms and gyms, the library, the game room, worship facilities, and the dining hall/cafeteria.

Combination/Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs)

A combination-type senior living community offers multiple levels of care within one facility, such as independent living, assisted living, and memory care. 

This approach allows residents to transition seamlessly between care levels as their needs change, fostering a sense of stability and continuity. These communities often provide a variety of amenities and programs designed to enhance residents' quality of life.

Music may support relaxation, social engagement, and cognitive stimulation in these settings. In these environments, music will often need to be varied based on the zones and tailored to fit the level and specific area it will be played. 

For example, in common areas, background music creates a welcoming atmosphere, while curated playlists can set the tone for events and activities. 

The Best Types of Music & Playlists

Music is closely tied to emotions. Specific songs or types of music can bring up fond memories.

The type of music played in senior living homes depends on where in the community it is being played. Music played in a gym or exercise area is bound to be more upbeat, for example, while music in a library might consist of more soothing nature sounds or rhythms.

Music in the lobby and hallways can often consist of peaceful ambient instrumentals in the background, while music played in the community and activity rooms will often be louder and more in the forefront.

The type of senior living community may also influence the music choices, given that each setting differs in senior ability, experiences, and goals.

Here are some examples of tailored playlists:

Independent Senior Living Communities

Upbeat, nostalgic songs that foster energy and social connection:

• "Here Comes the Sun" – The Beatles
• "Brown Eyed Girl" – Van Morrison
• "Sweet Caroline" – Neil Diamond
• "My Girl" – The Temptations
• "California Dreamin'" – The Mamas & The Papas
• "Dancing Queen" – ABBA
• "I’m a Believer" – The Monkees
• "Rock Around the Clock" – Bill Haley & His Comets
• "Twist and Shout" – The Beatles
• "Respect" – Aretha Franklin
• "Fun, Fun, Fun" – The Beach Boys
• "Surfin’ USA" – The Beach Boys
• "Penny Lane" – The Beatles
• "Can’t Buy Me Love" – The Beatles
• "Great Balls of Fire" – Jerry Lee Lewis
• "Runaround Sue" – Dion
• "Wake Up Little Susie" – The Everly Brothers
• "Shake, Rattle and Roll" – Big Joe Turner
• "Love Me Do" – The Beatles
• "Come Fly with Me" – Frank Sinatra

Assisted Living Facilities

Soothing and familiar songs to create a calming and friendly atmosphere:

• "Can’t Help Falling in Love" – Elvis Presley
• "What a Wonderful World" – Louis Armstrong
• "Moon River" – Andy Williams
• "Unforgettable" – Nat King Cole
• "You Are My Sunshine" – Johnny Cash
• "Que Sera, Sera" – Doris Day
• "Sentimental Journey" – Doris Day
• "Yesterday" – The Beatles
• "Fly Me to the Moon" – Frank Sinatra
• "You Make Me Feel So Young" – Frank Sinatra
• "Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head" – B.J. Thomas
• "The Way You Look Tonight" – Frank Sinatra
• "Edelweiss" – Rodgers & Hammerstein
• "Autumn Leaves" – Nat King Cole
• "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" – Judy Garland
• "Blue Moon" – The Marcels
• "Dream a Little Dream of Me" – Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong
• "All I Have to Do Is Dream" – The Everly Brothers
• "Georgia on My Mind" – Ray Charles
• "Catch a Falling Star" – Perry Como

Skilled Nursing & Intensive Care Facilities

Gentle and soothing music for relaxation and emotional comfort:

• "Clair de Lune" – Claude Debussy
• "Ave Maria" – Franz Schubert
• "Amazing Grace" – Traditional
• "Canon in D" – Johann Pachelbel
• "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole
• "Bridge Over Troubled Water" – Simon & Garfunkel
• "The Sound of Silence" – Simon & Garfunkel
• "Meditation from Thais" – Jules Massenet
• "Autumn Leaves" – Nat King Cole
• "Edelweiss" – Rodgers & Hammerstein

• "Moonlight Sonata" – Ludwig van Beethoven
• "Aloha ‘Oe" – Queen Lili’uokalani
• "Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise" – Chet Baker
• "Scarborough Fair" – Simon & Garfunkel
• "Shenandoah" – Traditional
• "Time to Say Goodbye" – Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman
• "The Swan" – Camille Saint-Saëns
• "On Golden Pond" – Dave Grusin
• "Danny Boy" – Traditional
• "Some Enchanted Evening" – Rodgers & Hammerstein

Combination/Continuing Care Retirement Communities

A versatile mix of genres and tempos to suit diverse preferences and care levels:

• "Stand by Me" – Ben E. King
• "Let It Be" – The Beatles
• "Blue Suede Shoes" – Elvis Presley
• "Rock Around the Clock" – Bill Haley & His Comets

• "Que Sera, Sera" – Doris Day

• "Take Five" – Dave Brubeck
• "Moon River" – Andy Williams

• "Fly Me to the Moon" – Frank Sinatra

• "Amazing Grace" – Traditional

• "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole
• "The Way You Look Tonight" – Frank Sinatra

• "Bridge Over Troubled Water" – Simon & Garfunkel

• "Dancing Queen" – ABBA

• "Brown Eyed Girl" – Van Morrison

• "My Girl" – The Temptations

• "Clair de Lune" – Claude Debussy

• "Unforgettable" – Nat King Cole

• "Sweet Caroline" – Neil Diamond

• "Autumn Leaves" – Nat King Cole

• "Georgia on My Mind" – Ray Charles

Note: This article includes examples of styles Pandora CloudCover curates, not a guaranteed playlist as catalog contents may change.

Research Around Music Being Beneficial for Seniors

There has been a lot of research and studies showing that music is good for the brain. It can enhance natural pathways to pleasure and elicit a wide range of emotions.

Studies have also been done to show the benefits of music on the aging brain. Music can be a way to exercise your brain, much in the same way that going to the gym works out your body.

Music stimulates the brain. Some studies suggest keeping your brain engaged with music during the aging process can provide a host of benefits, including these:

• Lower blood pressure
• Reduced anxiety
• Improved quality of sleep
• Lesser perception of pain
• Enhanced mood
• Improved memory
• Increased mental alertness

Some studies suggest that background music may affect aspects of memory or cognitive performance in older adults. Hearing specific music can also trigger memories, and music can bring up positive associations with a past time or event.

Even in the case of advanced dementia, the response to music can be remembered, as it is often ingrained deep in the brain earlier in life before the onset of dementia.

Music may be soothing for some residents and staff. It can help to ease tension and improve the moods of both seniors and staff in senior living communities.

Music & Staff Wellbeing

More than 40% of nursing home staff report anxiety symptoms. While your employees may love their work and your residents, their careers can be stressful. Music may help. 

Your employees may appreciate upbeat sounds to ease into the workday, while positive lyrics can help them focus on the good things happening around them. Just as a favorite song might improve a resident’s mood, the perfect tune could help an employee push past a stressful moment with grace. 

Ask your staff what types of music they’d like to hear, and collect feedback on the playlists you choose. Inviting staff feedback may help them feel included and contribute to workplace well-being.

References

Keep Your Brain Young with Music. (n.d.). Johns Hopkins Medicine.

The Cognitive Effects of Listening to Background Music on Older Adults: Processing Speed Improves with Upbeat Music, While Memory Seems to Benefit from Both Upbeat and Downbeat Music. (October 2014). Aging Neuroscience.

Music and Dementia: An Overview. (June 2017). Practical Neurology.

Why Is Music Good for the Brain? (October 2020). Harvard Health Publishing.

Study: Mental Health Problems Plague Nearly Half of Nursing Home Staff. (August 2025). McKnights Long-Term Care News.

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