An article resulting from the Didge Project (see link below),
describes the therapeutic impact of music in providing
medical benefits such as:
•
Music Helps Control Blood Pressure and Heart-Related
Disorders
•
Listening and Playing Music Helps Treat Stress and
Depression
•
Music Therapy Helps Treat Alzheimer’s Disease
•
Studying Music Boosts Academic Achievement in High
Schoolers
•
Playing Guitar (and Other Instruments) Aids in Treating PTSD
•
Studying Music Boosts Brain Development in Young Children
•
Music Education Helps Children Improve Reading Skills
•
Listening To Music Helps Improve Sleep
•
Playing Didgeridoo Helps Treat Sleep Apnea
Click to follow link to: Music Benefits Research
Article References:
•
Cardiovascular Society of Great Britain
•
Psychology Today
•
McGill University in Canada
•
The Namm Foundation
•
Alzheimer’s Foundation of America
•
UCLA
•
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
•
University of Liverpool
•
SAGE Publications/Psychology of Music
•
The Center for Cardiovascular Disease in China
•
British Medical Journal
•
The Benefits of Music and
Music Education:
NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) research
foundation, The NAMM Foundation, sponsored research that
determined that:
•
there is a strong connection between rhythm skills and pre-
reading abilities in toddlers
•
music enhances fine motor skills
•
everyday listening skills are stronger in musically-trained
children who also pay attention, and keep sounds in memory
•
children who attended and participate in music classes
showed improvements in how the brain processes speech
•
children who participate in music attain higher reading scores
Follow link to view an animated TED
talk that describes research focused on
understanding How Playing an
Instrument Benefits Your Brain
(by Anita Collins)
Research looked at brain activities when:
1.
Listening to music
2.
Playing music
3.
Reading a book
Both music listening and playing activities
showed a much higher increase in brain
activity. Playing music covers multiple
areas of the brain concurrently processing
intricate information.