Did you know that admissions teams in universities, and people in the workplace actually prefer to hire people that have had music education in high school?
An example was shared by Kathy Fester, my guest on Brain Health Matters this week. If there’s one seat left at your university of choice, and there are two applicants with identical GPAs, they will take that student for that one seat that has music versus the one that has no music.
Why? Because of all of those skills, and the cognitive and emotional development that happens when you study music and play with others in a band or orchestra all ties into this one area called music.
Kathy pointed out many qualities, including:
1) Patience: You have to develop it as you’re practicing your instrument, whether it’s voice or a trumpet, or piano or any of them. There will be mistakes, many of them, and you must be patient with yourself and the music.
2) Discipline: Only by sticking with it and practicing no matter what, will you become good. And this is especially true when you play as part of a group so that you don’t let others down.
3) Self awareness and self confidence: To be able to learn and isolate and analyze where the difficulties are and how to overcome those.
Music Physically Enhances the Brain
From the point of view of a healthy brain, music actually changes the structure of your brain. You develop more robust corpus callosum, the white matter structure that connects the hemispheres of the brain.
You develop more cognitive reserve. With learning music, the brain develops many pathways of learning and memory, so if one part of the brain is damaged in any way, the other parts can pick up the slack much more easily.
There are many more benefits, so be sure to listen to the podcast and please, if you have any connection to teachers, school board trustees who budget music education, parents, grandparents …. please share this with them.
By helping our kids get more music education now, we are helping them have better futures.
And for adults who have never taken music lessons – do not despair! These benefits accrue no matter WHAT age you start.
I just know you’ll love Kathy’s enthusiastic and engaging manner, and the amazing amount of information she shared.
Here’s the link to the podcast, and here’s the link to watch on YouTube.
And if you’re excited to learn more about the many ways music can make a better brain, be sure to check out The Musical Brain.
And if you’re excited to learn more about the many ways music can make a better brain, be sure to check out The Musical Brain.