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Northwestern University scientists have pulled together a review of research into what music - specifically, learning to play music - does to humans. The result shows music training does far more than allow us to entertain ourselves and others by playing an instrument or singing. Instead, it actually changes our brains.

The paper, just published in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, is a compilation of research findings from scientists all over the world who used all kinds of research methods. The bottom line to all these studies: musical training has a profound impact on other skills including speech and language, memory and attention, and even the ability to convey emotions vocally.

So what is it that musical training does? According to the Northwestern scientists, the findings strongly indicate it adds new neural connections — and that primes the brain for other forms of human communication.

In fact, actively working with musical sounds enhances neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to adapt and change. “A musician’s brain selectively enhances information-bearing elements in sound. In a beautiful interrelationship between sensory and cognitive processes, the nervous system makes associations between complex sounds and what they mean,” Nina Kraus, lead author of the Nature paper and director of Northwestern’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, explained in a statement to the media. “The efficient sound-to-meaning connections are important not only for music but for other aspects of communication.”

For example, researchers have found that musicians are better than non-musicians in learning to incorporate sound patterns for a new language into words. Their brains also appear to be primed to comprehend speech in a noisy background.

What’s more, children who have had music lessons tend to have a larger vocabulary and better reading ability than youngsters who haven’t had any musical training. And children with learning disabilities, who often have a hard time focusing when there’s a lot of background noise, may be especially helped by music lessons. “Music training seems to strengthen the same neural processes that often are deficient in individuals with developmental dyslexia or who have difficulty hearing speech in noise,” Dr. Kraus stated.

Find the full article here: http://www.nammfoundation.org/research/music-benefits-brain-research-reveals

This sounds really interesting!

This article explores a new approach in the field of social work called Hip-Hop Therapy (HHT). HHT uses Hip-Hop music and culture to engage youth and address their issues in therapy by encouraging them to reflect on Hip-Hop lyrics as they relate to the youths’ own life experiences. HHT also utilizes concepts from established forms of therapeutic approaches such as music therapy, behavioral therapy, and narrative therapy and may be instituted in either individual or group settings. Using HHT allows practitioners to embrace youth culture while simultaneously attempting to deconstruct negative attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors held by the youth and replace them with healthy and positive goals and objectives. 

Read the full article here:  http://standuphelpout.org/socialwork/praxis/pdfs/praxis_article4.pdf

A Florida Dept of Education study of at-risk students found that 75% said their participation in the arts influenced their decision to graduate from high school. This is just one of numerous studies that have noted that the arts reach students not ordinarily reached, in ways not normally used, thus keeping tardiness, truancies and, eventually, dropouts down.

• Students involved in the arts demonstrate increased academic performance, reduced absenteeism, and better skill-building.
• Among at-risk youth, the segment of society most likely to suffer from limited lifetime productivity, the arts contribute to lower rates of relapse into criminal behavior and increased self-esteem.
• Arts assist in the development of much needed creative thinking, problem solving and communication skills.

• The College Board identifies the arts as one of the six basic academic subject areas students should study in order to succeed in college.
• Schools with music programs have significantly higher graduation and attendance rates than do those without programs.
• Music training is far superior to computer instruction in dramatically enhancing children’s abstract reasoning skills, the skills necessary for learning math and science. In fact, nearly 100% of past winners in the prestigious Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology (for high school students) play one or more musical instruments.

Success in developing intelligence

• Children with music training have significantly better verbal memory than those without such training, and the longer the training, the better the verbal memory.
• Musically trained children perform better in memory tests that are correlated with general intelligence skills such as literacy, verbal memory, mathematics and IQ.
• Playing a musical instrument significantly enhances the brainstem’s sensitivity to speech sounds.

Success in life

• Studying music encourages self-discipline and diligence, and helps students learn to become sustained, self-directed learners.
• Creating and performing music promotes self-expression and provides self-gratification while giving pleasure to others.
• Music helps young people connect to themselves and others, thus it is an effective way to introduce children to diversity.

The study looked at a broad range of arts activities from music, theater or visual arts classes to out-of-school arts programs. It found that low-income students with high participation in the arts were 15 percent more likely to enroll in a selective four-year college than those with little arts engagement. The same students also had the highest rates of aspiring to a professional career.

Read the full article here: http://www.necn.com/03/30/12/Study-shows-arts-education-benefits-at-r/landing_scitech.html?&apID=41aafd6737104ee2be58ac023ecc418d

In an analysis of U.S. Department of Education data on more than 25,000 secondary school students, researchers found that students who report consistent high levels of involvement in instrumental music over the middle and high school years show “significantly higher levels of mathematics proficiency by grade 12.” This observation holds regardless of students’ socio-economic status, and differences in those who are involved with instrumental music vs. those who are not is more significant over time. (Catterall, J, Iwanga, J., 1999.)

Young people talk openly and honestly about their experience of mental illness and how music has helped their recovery. A trailer from the documentary “Key Changes. Music Changing Lives” produced by Inky Films.

Hey everybody!

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Cheers,

The MCL Crew