"The Mother and Child Union: A Musical, Poetic, & Neuroscientific Journey"

This multi-media event explores the fascinating ways that motherhood changes the brains of both mothers and children throughout their lives. Author, public speaker, and neuroscientist Dr. Larry Sherman will discuss how a mother’s brain changes during pregnancy and after birth, the neuroscience of the bonding that occurs in the brains of both, what happens when mothers sing to their children, and how a mother’s brain changes with their experiences with their children over the course of their lives.

These discussions will be highlighted by music performed by singer-songwriter Naomi LaViolette along with readings of the poetry of Ann Taylor, Nikita Gill, Margaret Hasse, and Alice Walker, and visual art that celebrates motherhood and all of its wonders and challenges.

Dr. Larry S. Sherman is a professor in the Division of Neuroscience at the Oregon National Primate Research Center and in the Department of Cell, Developmental and Cancer Biology at OHSU. He is also the President of the OR and SW WA Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience. He has over 100 publications related to brain development, neurodegenerative diseases, and neurofibromatosis. His book, Every Brain Needs Music: The Neuroscience of Making and Listening to Music, which he wrote with Portland musician and music professor Dennis Plies, was recently published by Columbia University Press.

Naomi LaViolette is a composer, performer, singer-songwriter and versatile pianist based in Portland, Oregon. Since 2004, the Oregon Repertory Singers have made her an essential part of their artistic staff as their pianist. A published choral composer with Santa Barbara Publishing, her works have been performed and recorded by many choirs around the US, including the Oregon Repertory Singers’ album Shadows on the Stars, winner of the American Prize.

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