Music in our brains

Music in our brains

  By: Jasmine Winter

The American Physiological Association has done a preliminary study that states that by playing a musical instrument for several years, can keep your mind sharper in your older years. A theory was presented on why the mind is sharpened  by music lessons that was stated in the article was; “Musical activity throughout life may serve as a challenging cognitive exercise, making your brain fitter and more capable of accommodating the challenges of aging,” said lead researcher Brenda Hanna-Pladdy (PHD). “Since studying an instrument requires years of practice and learning, it may create alternate connections in the brain that could compensate for cognitive declines as we get older.”

            They’ve done two studies ` on both elderly people and small children, so I thought why not ask around school and see how my fellow teenagers who play music are doing with they’re cognitive skills. I ended up interviewing three people of different musical backgrounds from band to choir to people who play for their own enjoyment and the enjoyment of others. Four people, who go to Lake Hamilton High School, were interviewed with the same five questions.

Although this study has been done in smaller children, the American Physiological Association wondered if these benefits extended across a time line. This study had three main study groups which included seventy healthy adults who; had no musical training whatsoever, one to nine years of musical training, and ten years of more of musical training. The age range for this group was from ages sixty to eighty-three.

The three people I asked were; Casey Garcia, Amelia Creamer, and Jager Felice. All of which happen to play music. Casey Garcia is in LH Singers, Amelia Creamer is in first chair, second band here at Lake Hamilton High School, and Jager Felice is in the band Our Friends Fall Silent.

Casey Garcia and Amelia Creamer felt that music lessons have helped them academically where as Jager wasn’t fully sure if it had benefitted him. All three of these students answered that “Yes,” when I had asked if they had entered musical competitions. The three of these students have all been playing music for different amounts of time. Casey Garcia has been playing for four years, Amelia has been playing for 6 years, and Jager has been playing for two in a half years.

As you can tell playing music has benefitted two out of the three of the people I interviewed academically. After reading the study and conducting a miniature study of my own, I’ve come to realize that playing a musical instrument or taking music lessons is actually beneficial. So if you haven’t gotten musical lessons I encourage you to take music lessons, or encourage a friend of family member to them, if music isn’t your thing.