| In Praise of Music |
Art & the Senses: Body & Mind |
| Seven Effects of Music Across the Brain , Neuro-aesthetics Research , April 6, 2026 |
The Economist published a concise article of 800 words in its edition of 20th March entitled “Is Playing Music Good for the Brain?”In its editorial custom the author's name was not given. Its summary points covered seven areas. NEURAL CONNECTION EFFECT “Making music is a mental workout. The brain must simultaneously co-ordinate sound and vision, as well as fine motor control, focus and imagination. “Over time this stretches the brain like a muscle. Several studies have found that professional musicians have more grey matter (the neural tissue involved in thinking, movement and memory) in some regions than non-musicians.” EXECUTIVE FUNCTION EFFECT “One study from 2020 suggests that musicians may also have better executive function—the part of the brain that helps with planning and problem-solving. A meta-analysis from 2017 concluded that musicians also have a sharper memory.” TOLERANCE EFFECT “A study from last year suggested they may even be less sensitive to pain. The experiment, in which 40 participants were injected in the hand with a compound which mimics muscle soreness, found that subjects with musical experience reported less pain.” DEVELOPMENTAL EFFECT “A paper from 2010 found that musicians who begin training before the age of seven have a larger corpus callosum, the neural bridge between the brain’s two hemispheres, than later starters.” LINGUISTIC EFFECT “Research from 2014 suggests that learning an instrument also improves children’s second-language acquisition and non-verbal reasoning." PLEASURE EFFECT “The brain’s limbic system, which processes pleasure and reward, lights up when you play an instrument. “Endorphins, feel-good hormones which relieve pain, flow when you are in the zone. Performing in a band, orchestra or choir eases stress and encourages social bonding." DECAY EFFECT “Musical training later in life has been linked to slower age-related decline. A small study on older adults showed that continuing to learn an instrument was associated with less deterioration in verbal working memory and grey-matter volume. “A meta-analysis from 2021 also found an association between music practice and reduced risk of developing dementia. Whether these findings arise because musical brains are more resilient or because those without dementia keep playing for longer is a knotty question that future studies will need to unpick. “In 2025 an observational study of 10,000 cognitively sound over-70s found that regular listeners to music had a 39% lower relative risk of cognitive decline. Proof of a causal relationship, however, remains elusive.” Cited, with acknowledgement and thanks, from the article can be read in full, by subscription, at: https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2026/03/20/is-playing-music-good-for-the-brain |
Reviewed by: Adam Somerset |
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