Ernie Mansfield, longtime OPEN EXCHANGE lister, offers Music Lessons For All Ages in our Music category.

A search on the internet yields hundreds of articles about how music improves mental function. Studies have shown, for example, that giving music lessons to young children helps to improve their math skills⁽¹⁾. Other studies show that senior citizens taking up music lessons may help stave off Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia⁽²⁾.

One thing is certain, however. Studying music can be a mentally rewarding experience as well as being "just plain fun." Music involves concentration, similar to yoga practice, or meditation. For wind instruments, breathing skills are improved. Coordination is improved in learning fingering techniques and embouchure control. And the list goes on.

Music is an important cultural element in human society. In our "pop culture," studying music is often considered a non-essential, or recreational activity. However, most people listen to music every day, and to some extent almost everyone is influenced by it.

I find it interesting that many of my adult students come to study with me after having recovered from a devastating illness. Taking the music lessons they always wanted suddenly moved up higher on their list.

Contact me for a list of internet links to research on music and the mind.

References:
⁽¹⁾ Martin F. Gardiner, Nature, May, 1996
⁽²⁾ "Preventing Mental Decline," San Francisco Chronicle, June 23, 2003

@ Ernie Mansfield