What is Father and how did it come to be?
Father is an album of music that emerged as my way to process my father’s illness. Most songs were written while I lived with and cared for him as he was living with Alzheimer’s disease for half a year in a rented apartment in the slums of Tel Aviv.
The idea to create an album came to me in Berlin from my friend, Akhil Kodamanchili,, who spotted me playing on the streets one day. Most tracks were recorded in my tiny house in the Jerusalem hills, with additional parts captured in Belgium, Berlin, and Tel Aviv. This scattered recording process created an intimate atmosphere throughout the work.
The album explores memory loss and how a person deals with and accepts their own degradation. Ultimately, this project stands as a memorial to our story and my love for my father. The final track, Scarberutinmmpl Fair, is particularly special as it’s played by my father and is a profound reminder of how music can transcend even Alzheimer’s.
By sharing this work, I hope to offer people emotional relief and permission for those walking the path of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease to let their feelings flow. Music is magic.
What initially inspired you to grapple with dementia?
Seeing someone you love suffering and not being able to do anything to make the suffering stop is one of the most difficult things I’ve felt in my life. I had to fix my thoughts and find some beauty and hope in this situation. I think that’s what gave me the motivation to keep going and dig deeper.
How has working on dementia-related art changed you?
This process has been incredibly personal. Creating music about my experience with my father’s dementia encouraged me to confront difficult emotions in a way I hadn’t before.
As I’m just starting as a musical artist, I hope this project might serve as a stepping stone for future work, carrying forward some of the honesty I’ve tried to bring to this deeply personal subject
How has the work been received?
Not many people from this community have heard this album yet. But of those who have and who have experienced illness with their parents, they have sent me messages saying the music brought them to a calm place and helped them release some tears.
As a kid, I really wanted to “make the world a better place.” Growing up made me think the world is what it is: beautiful and cruel at the same time. I hope, with my music, to change people’s hearts without pointing in a specific direction. Just to let people feel and love. I hope to do this for the rest of my life, for myself and for others.
This work is dedicated to: My father, Ranan Kuperman
Find more from Nitai Kuperman on Instagram.
Listen to the album in full on Spotify:
