Additional information from pennmedicine.org and nih.gov.

Dear reader, for the people who know me—and for those of you who have read my past articles—it is not a surprise that I am a bit of a music nerd. I love to listen to and pick apart music, but I also love to play it. So, I thought I would share some of the reasons that learning to play music is so good for the brain.

Learning an instrument does take some physical work, such as holding the instrument correctly while sitting/standing in the proper position, fitting your fingers to the strings or practicing breathing exercises for wind/brass instruments, and even carrying the instrument from place to place. However, learning and playing an instrument also takes a good deal of mental work, which leads to many benefits.

Playing an instrument is particularly good for the brain because it engages so many different parts of it. 

Playing music often includes fast, precise, deliberate and subtle movements that engage the sensorimotor part of the brain. The executive function of the brain is also engaged due to the focus that is required on so many aspects at once. A musician playing an instrument is not only paying attention to what they are actively doing, but also to what is coming up, and they are making split-second decisions to adjust active movements while planning for upcoming movements. 

Additionally, the amount of sensory input is extremely stimulating to the brain with the visual input of reading the music, the audio input of hearing the music, the physical stimulus of feeling the instrument and the emotional catharsis of playing and feeling the music.

Playing music has also been shown to reduce stress and help cognitive and memory functioning. While learning an instrument as a child is extremely beneficial and can provide life-long effects, it is never too late to learn (an old dog can learn new tricks) and there will still be many, many benefits.

So, if there is an instrument you put down years ago and have been trying to find a reason to pick up again, or if you have been meaning to learn a new instrument, or if you just want to be able to read music, let this be the push to help and expand your brain.