Music Training Promotes Brain Development In Kids

Music geniuses like Amadeus Wolfgang Mozart started developing their crafts as young children. Most children will not become as famous or passionate with music as Mozart or Beethoven, but many will benefit from learning and training with this art in various ways. Aside from being able to express themselves, entertain their families and friends, or have fun just tinkering with an instrument of their choice, children may develop their mental abilities and maximize their brains’ potentials by engaging in music.

Research on the impact of music on child brain development is not new. The effect of music on brain size has been studied since the 19^th century, and it has led some people like Georgia Sen. Zell Miller to devise "Beethoven for Babies," a classical CD that was given to every newborn baby in Georgia to bring home from the hospital. Recent technology, particularly imaging techniques like the MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) has also made it possible for investigators to visualize the impact of music on brain size and brain activity ("the Mozart effect") in living subjects. Although researchers are not yet sure whether listening to classical music at an early age affects brain development, studies suggest that music training may have an effect. On the other hand, some experts also think that a child’s ability to learn to play an instrument may occur only in those whose brains were already overdeveloped in certain areas.

Benefits Of Music Training

Previous studies have shown that musical training is associated with IQ improvement in school-aged children. Experts believe that music promotes cognitive (mental) development in children and that it should be part of pre-school and elementary education. It has been shown that children taking music lessons display improvements in memory skills that correlate with non-musical skills such as mathematics, literacy, visual and spatial processing, and verbal memory, compared to children who are not taking lessons.  

Studies show that there are many ways musical training can improve the connectivity and function of different brain regions. It increases one’s brain volume and supports communication between various brain areas. Playing a musical instrument at an early age (particularly before age 7) affects how the brain interprets and assimilates a wide array of sensory information. Musical training enhances their ability to integrate information from different senses - hearing, sight, and touch. It increases connectivity between areas in the brain (brain circuits), thus creating alternative access in broken or dysfunctional systems within the brain.

Canadian neuroscientists who examined the brains of adults ages 19-21 with at least one year of musical training found that certain brain regions associated with self-awareness and hearing were larger in those who began music training before they were seven years old. Specifically, these brain regions had more gray matter and a thicker cortex, which forms the outer layer of the brain.

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Another study done by Swedish researchers found that musical training reshapes brain circuits through neuroplasticity. MRI analysis of the brain function of pianists while playing on a 12-key piano keyboard showed that musical training helped improve their ability to improvise, suggesting improved brain connectivity and less reliance on memory. 

Music and Psychological Health

Aside from improving cognitive function, recent research suggests that learning to play a musical instrument such as the violin also enhances psychological health.

A child psychiatry research team from the University of Vermont College of Medicine has just published the results of the study in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, stating that musical training may help children control their emotions, reduce their anxiety, and focus their attention. Their research, so far, is the largest investigation on the association between musical training and brain development, having 232 participants.

The team, led by James Hudziak, M.D., professor of psychiatry and director of the Vermont Center for Children, Youth and Families, analyzed the MRI scans of the brains of children six to 18, paying attention to changes in the thickness of the outer layer (cortical) areas of the brain. In their previous investigation, they found that changes (thickening/thinning) in specific brain areas influenced the occurrence of anxiety, depression, aggression, behavior control, and attention problems, even in kids without mental illness or disorder. Their recent study aimed to find out if music training, a positive activity, would influence these cortical indicators.

Music practice increased thickness in the area of the cortex that controls executive functioning (working memory, attention control) organization, and planning ability. It also appears to affect areas of the brain that play a role in inhibitory control and processing of emotions. The authors believe that playing the violin, for example, may help a child fight psychological disorders such as anxiety and depression better than prescription pills. These findings support the main author’s model that the totality of a child’s environment, including family, pets, teachers, friends, and extracurricular activities, contribute to psychological health, with music being a critical component in the model.

How To Motivate Kids To Practice Playing An Instrument

Many parents would want to see their children learn to play a musical instrument, whether it is the piano, the violin or the guitar. However, many kids might prefer to tinker with their electronic gadgets, play video games or play sports.

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The key to motivating a child to pick an instrument and learn to use it is to start them young, initially exposing them to music by listening, singing, swaying or dancing, and playing games. It is important to determine if they are ready or mature enough to choose an instrument and take lessons. However, parents can start by helping their kids develop simple skills like identifying musical beats, melody, or instruments. They can take formal lessons when they are older to encourage their understanding of music, without pressuring them to become great performers.