It’s one thing to be involved in music passively, by listening, but it’s another thing entirely to make music by playing an instrument or by singing. Through active, progressive involvement in music making, the benefits really multiply.
So, what happens when you play an instrument or sing? You’re doing a number of very different things, simultaneously. On the one hand you draw on a group of cognitive skills: thinking, controlling, analysing and reading. In musical terms this is about measuring pulse and rhythm, reading and recognising pitch, and controlling physical co-ordination and fine motor skills. On the other hand, you call on more instinctive and emotional abilities relating to imagination, perception, creative understanding and musical meaning.
Rarely is such a wide range of skills and abilities present in one activity, but when you play an instrument, including your singing voice, they are all brought together at the same time. The amazing thing about making music – the unique lifelong benefit – is that it forges vital connections between all these different types of skill and activity. Creating these connections is especially valuable during the childhood and teenage years of growth, education and personal development. The benefits will then be there whatever a young person’s ambitions are – musical or otherwise.
What happens when you play or sing?
