Does musical training help to improve learning and comprehension?

Musically inclined : Does musical training as a child improve learning and comprehension as an adult?

Varsha Naik

Research says that some music training in childhood helps to improve brain functions as adults — especially the complex processing of sound involving listening and learning. "The study suggests that short-term music lessons may enhance lifelong listening and learning," said Nina Kraus, professor of neurobiology, physiology and communication sciences at Northwestern University, who led the research. Dr Hemanth Mittal, psychiatrist agrees that music lessons at a young age, can help in developing enhanced skills as an adult. "Learning music or an instrument is a structural activity, which requires the brain to function in a professional way. This is turn imbibes professionalism in the mind that carries forward till adulthood," he says. When a child begins to learn music, it is chaotic, but there is a step-by-step process to learn the notes, how to play, understanding small structured pieces and finally creating music on your own, he explains. "This gives the child the skills to plan, organise, sequence and put ideas into action, which lasts for life," he says.         University researchers have directly examined what happens after children stop playing a musical instrument after only a few years, the Journal of Neuroscience reports. Adults with one to five years of musical training as children had enhanced brain responses to complex sounds, making them more effective at pulling out the fundamental frequency of the sound signal, they say. This frequency is the lowest in sound and is crucial for speech and music perception, allowing recognition of sounds in complex and noisy auditory environments, according to a Northwestern statement.  As we grow, the faculty of listening is as important as the ability to see and speak in an articulate manner. "This training as a child translates in adulthood to allow us to drown out ambient noise and only accept the sounds that are necessary for us to understand especially in a place that is filled with a number of sound sources,” Hemanth explains Published Date:  Sep 05, 2012.

 Courtesy (visited 8.9.12)  http://epaper.dnaindia.com/story.aspx?id=26279&boxid=26920132&ed_date=2012-09-05&ed_code=820004&ed_page=5