In Utero and Huan Huan bring music into elder day-care centers and local communities

Music brand In Utero brings band Huan Huan into elder day-care centers and local communities with a free tour, "Words From That Day," wrapping up over a warm Mother's Day weekend. From Taipei's Zhongshan district to Beidou, Changhua — bridging generations through music: "Having the elders stay seated for the whole show was the biggest compliment we could get." The band prepared a special setlist of last century's classics: "Before I could keep grandparents company, those old songs kept me company first."

Launched together by music brand "In Utero" and companionship-minded band Huan Huan, the free community program "In Utero Present Vol. 3: Words From That Day" wrapped up successfully over last week's warm Mother's Day holiday. The third edition of In Utero's performance series, "Words From That Day," ran May 7–9, visiting the Zhongshan Senior Residence and Service Center in Taipei, the Anqi Day Care Center in Huatan, Changhua, and the Iu-Tsheh-Tiàm bookstore in Beidou, Changhua — bringing a series of cross-generational musical gatherings to elders and local communities around Mother's Day. Huan Huan rehearsed a special set of Mandarin classics for the occasion, and preparing it left the band members exclaiming: "We'd already been well looked after by the music before we even got there!"

The tour's first two stops — the Zhongshan Senior Residence and Service Center in Taipei and the Anqi Day Care Center in Huatan, Changhua — brought warm, lively singalongs with the elders in attendance, celebrating Mother's Day early. Throughout the shows, many elders hummed along or came up to perform together, and after the shows some stayed in their seats, thanking the band members through tears. The final stop, on May 9, was held at Iu-Tsheh-Tiàm bookstore in Beidou, Changhua, open to local neighbors — the show featured a special duet between vocalist Coco and her father, Co, plus a spontaneous karaoke session, and even drew Huan Huan fans making their very first trip to Beidou just for the show.

To make sure listeners of every age could enjoy the show and sing along easily, Huan Huan spent the prep period re-listening to and reinterpreting a wide range of classics spanning from the early Republic era to the 2000s. Drummer Yi-zhen shares: "It had been so long since I'd listened this closely to songs from that older generation. One day on a packed MRT ride home from work, I put on a live version of Feng Fei-fei's 'Applause,' and watching the crowd on stage and in the audience crying together from the sheer resonance of it, I couldn't help tearing up too. Getting this glimpse into the past gave me a faint sense of a time in Taiwan that was both hard and brilliant — the very era those grandparents worked so hard to get through."

Bassist Shitou, looking out at the elders in the crowd, was reminded of a memory with his own grandmother from years ago: "In my early twenties, I never told my family anything about my shows outside. But once, at a small riverside show, I saw my grandmother slowly making her way down the stairs with her cane to sit down. The lighting was too dim for me to really see her expression, but I remember her eyes were bright. For years afterward, she still remembered that night." He says that this time, he saw that same look in the eyes of many strangers' grandparents. Vocalist Coco adds: "Performing back in my hometown of Changhang for the first time meant a lot to me. Ah Chiang, the owner of 'Iu-Tsheh-Tiàm' at the Beidou stop, is someone I grew up with, and our families are close — his unconditional support really moved me. This event didn't just reconnect me with childhood memories — singing with the elders, duetting with my dad, and dedicating a song to my mom during the show are some of the most meaningful memories I have, and it showed me a new way to resonate with my hometown."

Throughout the tour, the team also had unexpected exchanges with local workers at each stop. Supervisors and staff at the Zhongshan stop in Taipei walked the team through the different categories of elder-care institutions and how to apply for them; the meticulous, hands-on caregiving approach at the Anqi Day Care Center in Huatan gave the team a much more concrete understanding of person-centered care. At the Beidou stop, the team unexpectedly crossed paths with "Yuan Zi Zhai," a local Yuanlin organization promoting home-based medical care, whose Dr. Kuo shared that the team is also exploring what elders need beyond medical care — and that music may be one answer. Yi-zhen also noted that the tour made her realize companionship goes both ways: "This project started out meaning to keep our grandparents company, but honestly, I was already being kept company the moment I put those old songs on during my commute — and then a second time, by those bright eyes once we got there."

After the shows, volunteers at the Zhongshan stop shared that this was the first time they'd seen such a young band perform there, and cautioned that elders' reactions to live music tend to be quieter than expected, sometimes even leaving partway through. But across all three shows, nearly every elder and community member stayed seated the whole time — sometimes listening quietly, sometimes clapping and humming along. The In Utero team says the response far exceeded expectations: "We're glad we kept moving forward with these musicians, building bridges through songs, and we hope to keep opening up more meaningful, spark-filled exchanges going forward."

"In Utero Present" is a themed performance series curated by music brand "In Utero," where each edition centers on a specific theme, trying to bring music into real-life settings and open up dialogue across generations and life experiences. Following the first edition, "Hotpot Band Show," where audiences ate hotpot and listened to music together at Jhan Ji Spicy Hotpot, and the second, where L8ching, Chang Kan-hsun, and Sung Chu-lin — "friends who drink together" — traveled from south to north drinking and making music with listeners, "In Utero Present Vol. 3: Words From That Day" centers on the front lines of elder care in Taiwan, once again bringing music out of its usual performance spaces. For more on In Utero, follow the official Facebook page, Instagram, and Threads.

▍In Utero Present Vol. 3: Words From That Day ✧ Tour dates 5/7 (Thu) 13:45 — Zhongshan Senior Residence and Service Center, Taipei — not open to outside visitors 5/8 (Fri) 13:45 — Anqi Day Care Center, Huatan, Changhua — not open to outside visitors, but you're welcome to join for ba-wan afterward 5/9 (Sat) 16:30 — Iu-Tsheh-Tiàm, Beidou, Changhua — fully open to neighbors and locals ✧ Organizer: In Utero ✧ Sponsorship support: Jiaoju Audio Co. (northern leg) ✧ Production: Wild Fruit Creative Co. (central leg)