Learning how to play an instrument has a very powerful influence in our lives that reaches far beyond the ability to perform selected songs. Along with the joy that creating music provides, learning to play an instrument such as the piano helps students develop important emotional and social skills that will continue throughout their lives.
It has been proven that music classes has a positive effect on a child’s ability to learn foreign languages, stimulate imaginative thinking, develop mathematical abilities and train memory.
Finally, the ability to play musical instruments, such as the piano, violin, saxophone, guitar and other instruments, has always been considered prestigious, and is highly regarded with respect among others.
There are lots of benefits of studying music from an early age. Music can help children express themselves and their emotions, develop creativity, increase their communication skills, learn to approach problems in different ways, work with others towards a common goal, and gives them something to enjoy! Learning music is like learning a foreign language, so the earlier you start a child, the more advantages they will have and the more time they will have to learn and perfect technique as well. Starting a child at a young age will help a child gain control, become better at phrasing, and hear pitch easier than those starting at an older age.
- Brain Development
A study by Northwestern University shows that studying music, even just for a few years in childhood has a lasting effect on brain function. Adults who took piano lessons had greater neural responses than those who never studied music.
Nina Kraus, director of Northwestern’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory explained that this enhanced auditory response sharpened perception and communication as children grew and became adults. - Increased Dexterity
Most instruments teach a degree of dexterity in finger management, however the keyboard helps students learn how to work for both hands separately in very complex ambidextrous actions. The dual handwork required while playing the piano is a difficult skill to perfect, and is much like learning how to rub the belly and patting the head at the same time. This supple handy-work makes learning other skills such as touch typing much easier later in life. While most instruments help students learn control over certain areas of their bodies, most notably finger movement, the piano is a demanding instrument that involves foot movement on the pedals, as well as hand-eye coordination as the notes are read and then played. - Educational Value
There are practical relations for the piano lesson in education as well. Students have a greater capacity for spatial cognition, and also score higher in math. They pick up on concepts such as fractions and ratios quicker due to the musical applications of those concepts already instilled by their music teacher. - Increased Concentration
Learning music improves the ability to concentrate on complex tasks. It also requires the mind to make quick computations and translate them to hand movements. While most people automatically think of music as a creative art, and it is, playing an instrument is also a critical thinking skill. - Memory Function
Piano students develop many positive attributes from learning to read music from their teacher. However, students naturally begin to memorize favorite pieces, and develop the ability to quickly see patterns in sheet music. These are all skills that improve both short and long-term memory function that will help them all through life. - Strengthens Hand Muscles & Hand-Eye Coordination
It is no surprise that learning to play the piano requires hand-eye coordination, but a recent study on hand motor control in musicians suggests that piano performers have actually changed the cortical mapping to increase finger speeds. For children and adults with reduced motor skills, learning to play the piano can challenge these brain connections to motor movement and even strengthen coordination.