Do you listen to music when you are sad? Do you and your friends listen to music when you are together? When you exercise, does it seem as if the music keeps you going?
It is proven that listening to and playing music has many benefits for our brain development as well as our emotions.
Some people take part in music therapy, the clinical and evidence-based use of music involvements to accomplish customized goals. Such programs are designed to help induce wellness, manage stress and enhance your memory, along with many other reasons.
Have you ever heard it said that Mozart makes you smarter? This is due to a 1993 study conducted on college-level students that were instructed to take a spatial reasoning test while listening to a Mozart sonata, and then take yet another similar test. You might be able to guess what the outcome of this study was—it led to claims that listening to Mozart temporarily increased people’s IQs.
Anne McCrea Soltysiak, department of psychology at Sinclair Community College, has her PhD and studies neuroscience and the brain.
After discussing the results of the 1993 test results stated above, Soltysiak said classical music enhances cognitive ability.
“Participants who hear Mozart may be expecting to do better on a test of cognitive ability, which acts as a kind of primer for the better performance, making the participants try harder,” Soltysiak said.
Since 2000, the study of music neuroscience—which draws on cognitive science, music education and neuroscience—has become ever-growing. People are fascinated that music can have so many benefits for us, such as speech perception and the ability to understand emotions in the voice, and the ability to multitask.
“Musical training literally enhances the development of brain structures in measurable ways,” Soltysiak said.
Ani Patel, associate professor of psychology at Tufts University and the author of Music, Language and the Brain, said that listening to music can be meditative and soothing, however simply plugging in your iPod is not going to make you a more intelligent person.
“There is now a growing body of work which suggests that actually learning to play a musical instrument may have impacts on other abilities,” Patel said.
Studies have shown a distinct connection between teaching children and adults to play musical instruments, and their improved executive functioning such as problem-solving skills, switching between multiple tasks and focus.
“There is some evidence that musical training, along with other brain–enhancing activities, may help to keep our brains healthy into old age and provide some protection against dementia,” Soltysiak said.
Chad Cook, music student at Sinclair Community College, said he plays many instruments, and has even taught himself how to play several of them, such as the trumpet, saxophone and piano.
“I have been playing most of them for around nine years,” Cook said. “I most often listen to different styles of music at work. It helps me stay focused on what I’m doing, while simultaneously keeping me relaxed.”
Diverse genres of music have different effects on our brain. If you choose to listen to loud hip-hop while you are trying to study for an exam, you may not be able to study as effectively as you would if you were listening to something with a lower tempo and volume.
“I will absolutely listen to music while studying. Especially when the music doesn’t have words—it helps me get into the material and keeps me from becoming distracted by outside noises,” Cook said.
This validates that music has a varied affect on each individual in more than one way. Soltysiak states that she never tries to listen to music while grading students’ work or writing lectures because it reduces her ability to focus on the task at hand.
“I play in a band, so music is extremely important to me. I listen to it more so while commuting on I-75 to help me de-stress from some of the rude drivers out there,” Soltysiak said.
She said music connects people on an emotional level.
“I can’t imagine living without music,” Soltysiak said. “Not only does it help to calm and comfort us at times, but it can also be an energizer for when you need to clean the house or do your aerobic routine. Music provides emotional connections between people. Who doesn’t have a romantic ‘our song’ as a couple?”
Maybe since learning this new information about music, along with all of the benefits, you might take up some lessons playing the piano or the drums—maybe you will have your children and loved ones join you. You could easily modify your studying methods to listen to wordless music that helps you concentrate more. Experimenting with different styles and genres is important. We are ever-changing beings; we are capable of creating better habits and forming new hobbies that will ultimately help us through our journeys in life.
Bethany Mason
Reporter