Musicians in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa are using a traditional string instrument, the begena, to provide therapy for residents at a nursing home. “Very sick patients, bedridden patients, when the begena is played by their bedside, they forget the pain and focus on the music,” says Dr Natnael Hailu, co-founder of Grace Nursing Home. The project is the brainchild of begena school founder Ermias Halay. “The practical side of the healing aspect, I did not know,” Ermias says. “But then when I thought of how it’s affected me personally, the before and after, I started thinking that there is something there.” IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES ARRANGED IN SEQUENCES