Did you take music lessons as a kid? Do you take music lessons now, or want to put a child one day through music lessons?
Maybe you find practicing and weekly lessons boring – I know as a kid, music lessons were tedious, difficult, and sometimes not what I always wanted.
But, sometimes the most painful things actually bring about the best results. New studies actually show music lessons are one of the most beneficial activities for young, developing brains.
In a time where budgets get cut for arts programs in public K-12 schools, maybe we should reconsider the ramifications of cutting these mind-enhancing programs from schools.
So what exactly are these studies, and do what they say about growing our brains in music? Check out the results of these studies to see how music augments your brain – or the brain of your child – for the best.
At the end, over 71 studies & articles on the power of music lessons are cited.
10. Learning a Musical Instrument Is Associated with Greater Ambition
In a large-scale scientific study measuring the effect of music lessons on the brain, scientists discovered the following:
The present study shows that even after controlling for a large number of parental background differences, learning a musical instrument is associated with better cognitive skills and school grades as well as higher conscientiousness, openness, and ambition.
The good news is that, according to The Atlantic, more students are being taught music now than they were 20 years ago.
Considering the preponderance of evidence in the last decade telling us how important music lessons are for brain development, perhaps the government – once the pandemic is over – should be making an even greater contribution towards arts education programs throughout the country.
9. Music Education Enhances Executive Functioning
Executive functioning refers to a person’s ability to perform tasks such as planning and functional memory. A number of young people every year are diagnosed with executive function disorders.
In a recent Netherlands study, 147 children elementary school-aged went through a study to see if grades and executive functioning were improved after taking music lessons.
The results were clear: students taking regular music lessons scored better on tests evaluating inhibition, verbal intelligence, and planning than non-music groups. The final conclusion of the study was that music enhanced overall academic performance.
8. Music Lessons Raise Your IQ
One study published within the last decade and published by University of California press demonstrates something unbelievable: music lessons actually raise your IQ.
In the abstract of the study, researchers noted the results of the study as follows:
“(Musically) Trained participants scored higher than untrained participants on the IQ Composite score and on its Verbal and Nonverbal subtests.”
IQ tests measure spatial and mathematical reasoning. Yet music lessons require students to do nothing but listen to a teacher, practice, and perform their instrument, or so it seems.
Why is music so integral to spatial learning?
It’s hard to say why exactly. All we know is that even a meta-analysis of 15 studies as far back as two decades ago demonstrates, conclusively, students who take music lessons increased spatial reasoning, performed better in math tests, and more.
7. Not Just for Kids
Actually, music lessons don’t just help children learn – they help adults with special conditions as well. In one study published in 2020, music lessons helped patients with dementia.
The study itself explored the importance of music in relation to memory, wellbeing, and self-awareness in older patients.
Sure, music lessons are traditionally associated with children. But – what if music has a healing power for adults too?
It’s actually been proven. Perhaps you are familiar with the field of music therapy, where music is used as a healing mechanism.
One recent study demonstrated the benefit of music therapy during chemotherapy on adult subjects. The conclusion? Music therapy helps reduce anxiety in cancer patients.
6. MIT: Music Lessons Help You Learn Languages
In one of the most interesting conclusions in music education literature, MIT has this to say about the effect of music lessons on learning languages:
Researchers have found that piano lessons have a specific effect on kindergartners’ ability to distinguish different pitches, which translates into an improvement in discriminating between words.
What an unbelievable conclusion! Learning music and hearing pitches in various registers translates directly to hearing words and language in a new and unique way.
5. Childhood Music Lessons Offer Some Long-Term Brain Protection Into Late Adulthood
An “oldie-but-goodie” National Geographic article from early 2014 suggests that music can have significant improvements in your brain and even help protect it in later adulthood from memory loss.
Why does it do this?
According to the article, the prevailing theory is that making music creates neural connections in the brain that would otherwise be absent in a non-musically-trained brain.
Because of these neural connections, a compensation effect can take place into adulthood where a decline in memory will lessen because of these added connections.
4. Music Lessons Literally Makes Your Brain Larger In Physical Size
A recent article published by Inc.com, citing a University of Montreal study as well as other studies, tell us that music lessons augment the size of the brain.
One particular area of the brain, known as the corpus callosum, is shown through brain scans to be larger in musicians than non-musicians. The corpus callosum is responsible for your “left brain” and “right brain” to communicate effectively with each other.
The same article points out something interesting; the brain boosting industry has become a multi-billion dollar conglomeration of companies hawking supplements, games, and other questionable activities for boosting brain power.
What if the answer to a better brain simply lied in music lessons? Something to think about.
3. Helps You Fight Distractions
A study from 2016 by Belgian researchers found that music helped children ages 9-12 ward off distractions.
This particular study measured 32 music students and 31 non-music students in a head-to-head observation of “cognitive inhibition.” Essentially, this means the ability to inhibit yourself from paying attention to distractions and irrelevancy.
Unequivocally, the music students scored higher than the non-music students. The researchers postulated one reason music lessons may help fight distractions is because of the concentration required to perform music.
Music is a social art, and it requires intense listening to other musicians, syncing rhythmically with other instrumentalists in an ensemble, focusing on the gestures and movements of a conductor, and even intently creating a composition. Students who don’t have to do music at a young age may never find a good reason to fight off distractions.
2. Musicians Are Human Word Processors
The New York Times cited a study back in 2013 from Northwestern University. In the study, a neurosurgeon from Northwestern observed 44 adults between the ages of 55 and 76; these adults were measured for electrical activity in a brain processing speech.
The results were intriguing; adults with at least 14 years of training in music processed speech faster than those with no musical training.
And, this didn’t have to be recent training either. In fact, the majority of the participants with a musical background had not even touched an instrument in 40 years!
Dr. Kraus, the neurosurgeon who led the study, emphasized that this research demonstrated the importance of a childhood music education in developing the brain.
1. Here Are 71+ Studies Saying Music Lessons Are the Best Thing For Your Brain
Every few weeks, a new study is popping up demonstrating the power of music lessons on the psyche of humans. While it seems like the effects are most potent on younger subjects, plenty of studies tell us that music lessons help patients of all ages.
SOURCES: Here is a list of studies, articles, and other media demonstrating how music lessons boost brain power and cognition
Music lessons help dementia patients: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31987062
MIT study links music lessons with better language skills: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180625192827.htm
Adults benefit from childhood music lessons (Northwestern University study): https://www.jneurosci.org/content/33/45/17667.short?sid=c8855982-7781-4f04-ad4b-c8a09bd1ebee
Music Lessons help you process speech faster: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/12/science/long-term-benefits-of-music-lessons.html
Musicae Scientae journal study says music lessons help you overcome distractions: https://psmag.com/news/another-brain-benefit-of-music-lessons
The Benefits of Playing Music Help Your Brain More Than Any Other Activity: https://www.inc.com/john-rampton/the-benefits-of-playing-music-help-your-brain-more.html
Music protects the brain in later ages: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/1/140103-music-lessons-brain-aging-cognitive-neuroscience/#close
15 study meta-analysis of spatial improvement in students taking music lessons: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3333643?seq=1
Music Lessons Were the Best Thing Your Parents Ever Did For You, According to Science: https://www.mic.com/articles/110628/13-scientific-studies-prove-music-lessons-were-the-best-thing-your-parents-did-for-you
Music lessons raise IQ: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/mp.2011.29.2.185?seq=1
Netherlands study shows music lessons enhance executive functioning:bhttps://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2018.00103/full
Study shows music lessons increase ambition and school grades: https://www.diw.de/documents/publikationen/73/diw_01.c.429221.de/diw_sp0591.pdf
Music therapy helps chemotherapy patients: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5072238/
Another music lessons enhances IQ study from University of Toronto Mississauga: https://undark.org/2019/11/04/music-lessons-intelligence/
Harvard reports on a study where music lessons enhance IQ: https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/16/03/music-lessons
Neuropsychology gives credence to music lessons providing a boost in brain function: https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2011/04/music-lessons
University of British Columbia study shows that high school students do better with music lessons: https://www.forbes.com/sites/evaamsen/2019/06/25/high-school-students-do-better-in-science-math-and-english-if-they-also-take-music-lessons/#7fc07aed2fda
Playing music lowers blood pressure: https://liverpoolacademyofmusic.com.au/play-an-instrument-relieve-stress/
Stanford study: music makes you pay attention: https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2007/07/music-moves-brain-to-pay-attention-stanford-study-finds.html
Musicians can hear the difference between phonological sounds better than non-musicians: https://www.nammfoundation.org/articles/2014-06-01/benefits-learning-and-playing-music-adults
University of Kansas study: music makes grades better: https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/the-benefits-of-music-education
Music boosts academic performance: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166432813005093
University of Texas at Arlington: visual memory is better in classical musicians: https://www.mic.com/articles/104586/science-just-showed-something-amazing-about-musicians-brains
University of Texas at Austin: music lessons boost confidence: https://www.gwern.net/docs/dnb/2004-costa-giomi.pdf
Surprise! Playing music makes you more creative: https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/11/25/13music.h33.html
Another study observing the power of music on cognitive performance: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1321103×09344378
Music training enhances spatial-task performance: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.2307/3345621Music students do better in math: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10100200
Meta-analysis of 30 studies demonstrate that music helps people read better: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/8755123308322270
Adult choral singers are more likely to be involved in community service: http://www.chorusamerica.org/advocacy-research/americas-performing-art
Scientific American says music lessons makes profound changes in the brain back in 2010: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hearing-the-music-honing/
Classroom keyboard instruction improves memory: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0885200600000508
Wall Street Journal – Playing a musical instrument later in life brings significant benefits: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-joy-of-learning-to-play-an-instrument-later-in-life-1492999441
University of Southern California – even just two years of music lessons demonstrates huge cognitive ability https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-11-music-children-brains-decision-making-network.html
Washington Post – music lessons empower emotional growth: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/01/07/music-lessons-spur-emotional-and-behavioral-growth-in-children-new-study-says/?postshare=231446607251961
University of Vermont – playing music helps kids brains: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141223132546.htm
Kids who sing in chorus get better grades than those who do not: https://www.kaufmanmusiccenter.org/images/uploads/content/ImpactStudy09_Report.pdf
Ohio State University – music enhances adolescent achievement: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1540-6237.2009.00598.x
Broader study links arts education to higher high school graduation rates in New York City: https://www.centerforartsed.org/sites/default/files/docs/CAE_Arts_and_Graduation_Report.pdf
4+ years of arts and/or music classes boost SAT scores by an average of 92(!) points https://www.americansforthearts.org/by-program/reports-and-data/legislation-policy/naappd/arts-facts-sat-scores-and-the-arts-1999-2015
Citing a Northwestern study (different than the previous one cited earlier in this list) about music positively affecting a child’s brain: https://time.com/3634995/study-kids-engaged-music-class-for-benefits-northwestern/
Predictor of IQ: https://www.apa.org/monitor/jun06/iq
National Institutes of Magnetic Health Resonances – music improves motor skills: http://www.newseveryday.com/articles/5953/20150108/http-www-nzherald-co-nz-lifestyle-news-article-cfm-c-id-6-objectid-11383648.htm
Another academic achievement study: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/019263659808259707
Promotes artistic expression: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0022429412474826
Quartz Magazine – music lessons make children’s brain development happen faster: https://qz.com/761445/research-shows-taking-music-lessons-can-speed-up-brain-development-in-children/
Studying music provides social benefits: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14613808.2013.829428
Music lowers stress and anxiety: https://psychcentral.com/lib/the-power-of-music-to-reduce-stress/
Music education enhances neuro-rehabilitation: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4411999/
NPR – Harmony Project in LA suggests music helps with speech: https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2014/09/10/343681493/this-is-your-brain-this-is-your-brain-on-music
U Penn Medicine – playing music has greater benefits than listening:
Indian children who took music lessons learned more complex vocabulary: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12646-013-0180-3
Musicians experience less age-related auditory processing decline: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21910546
Smithsonian Magazine – it makes you better at listening as an adult: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/playing-music-as-a-child-leads-to-better-listening-as-an-adult-29575073/
Thesis – music improves mathematical learning: https://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1276&context=ehd_theses
University College London – music significantly impacts young people https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242560857_The_power_of_music_Its_impact_on_the_intellectual_social_and_personal_development_of_children_and_young_people
Early music lessons reduce hearing loss: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6159/678.2
Children who were musicians showed better cooperation: http://syncproject.co/blog/2015/11/9/music-enhances-social-skills
Music significantly helps depression, anxiety in older adults who play instruments: https://www.mdedge.com/fedprac/article/106295/mental-health/prescription-music-lessons
Music helps patients with Alzheimers and other neurodegenerative disorders: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03444181
Playing in the school band makes you smarter:
Music students have better pitch perception: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30741909Playing music at a younger age helps social skills: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30534096
Playing drums helps working memory in older adults: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2972703
Improved “digit span” after 6 weeks of music lessons in children: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29358927
Singing lessons may treat respiratory problems: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28461167
Students with piano lessons score better in math: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10730700
Improves children’s spatial-temporal skills: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9090630
Voice lessons helped graduate students in speech-language pathology: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7620533
Music lessons improves children’s motor skills: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16597773
Playing didgeridoo helps sleeping disorders: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16377643
