Music Education Aids in Brain

Development
As a 7-year-old pianist, I experienced the joy of learning Beethovens Fr Elise. My eyes
deciphered the notes on the page, my ears guided me to depress the right keys, and my fingers
translated the symbols on the page with the right speed, rhythm and expression. The benefit in
my mind was the pleasure of making music. What I didnt know was that I was wiring my brain for
classroom learning.
Yet in the years since music fed my young mind and laid the groundwork for further intellectual
growth, the country has steadily moved away from music instruction. Too many schoolchildren
are learning without this effective discipline. Instead, the noisy national debates bounce from one
fix to the next, whether No Child Left Behind or Common Core. Left on the cutting-room floor
are music lessons yes, music that new research shows is essential for brain development.
Playing a musical instrument develops an important neurocognitive skill
known as executive function. Strong EF is critical for the brain to operate
in

school and in life. Focusing on a topic, memorizing information, inhibition,

cognitive flexibility and paying attention to multiple ideas
simultaneously are examples of it. It is at the heart of all learning.
Acquiring these skills starts in early childhood and is crucial for

healthy
from the

brain development through early adulthood. In fact, recent studies

Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience at Boston Childrens Hospital

indicate that EF is a strong predictor of academic achievement, even more than IQ.
The solution to weak academic performance isnt simply standardized testing or tutoring during
the elementary years and beyond. It is music performance starting in early childhood, which
promotes EF skills. A study from the Boston Childrens Hospital this past summer demonstrated
through MRI brain imaging that musical training promotes the development and maintenance of
these abilities. Lead investigator Nadine Gaab says the brains of musically trained children
display more activation and more mature executive function networks. This finding supports the
widely held perception that music performance and academic achievement go hand in hand.
Living evidence of musics power to turn the most underserved on to learning exists in the U.S.
chapters of El Sistema, which is an intensive after-school music training program for the neediest

children. Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Baltimore, New York City and dozens of other cities have
programs that have produced strong outcomes among students. Stanford Thompson, executive
director of Play on Philly, the local El Sistema program, boasts that its students outperform
peers who select academic tutoring and other afterschool programs, as measured by an
independent educational assessment firm. In other major cities, similar stories of improved
academic performance are emerging.
Unfortunately, these privately funded programs are all after-school initiatives that benefit a small
percentage of children. Music performance happens outside of the school day because districts
have not understood the positive impact it can have on academic performance.
We must change preschool and elementary education to include music performance as a core
subject. Studies show that early intervention is critical to avoid widening academic gaps further
down the road. Imagine including music training as a central part of the Head Start program,
which serves nearly one million children annually. Preschoolers could learn how to read music
and play an instrument. Music training in an ensemble could be an important part of the
elementary curriculum. Students would perform better on standardized tests as they learn to
process information, focus, switch mental gears and regulate thought patterns more effectively.
Resistance to change and complacency have shortchanged our children, particularly the
underserved. Here is the truth: Playing an instrument wires the brain for learning. By teaching
students to play music, we can increase their success in other disciplines.
It is time that we pay attention to the evidence before us and rethink education. No child should
be without music. My Fr Elise moment is available to all.
Mia Chung is a concert pianist and professor of musical studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in
Philadelphia.
Article from the Tallahassee Democrat.