MOTB is back following a couple of weeks of unintended downtime as I struggle with the Sisyphean challenges of research toward my doctorate in psychology and cognitive neuroscience. While I won’t bore you with the details of my academic and research frustrations,
The idea of music’s potential and power as a force for social change is hardly new. One only needs to look at the 1960s and even this decade to see what music can achieve in terms of altering conscious perception of the world and one’s place in it. Other than the emotional impact of music, what kind of power can music have on an individual level? A number of studies have shown that music can benefit cognitive development in children, although not in the Baby Mozart sense. I’m doubtful that putting a baby in front of a television has much benefit on brain or cognitive development. Rather, young children interacting with music, playing rhythms, learning basic theory, and learning to play an instrument all appear beneficial.
One of I wouldn’t do what I do if I didn’t think it mattered, and it’s gratifying to see more and more scientifically derived evidence that backs this up. In my last column I mentioned that human beings are hard wired to desire to change their state of consciousness. I’ve also remarked in this column before that human beings are the only primates hard wired for music and rhythms. Perhaps this is why it stands as such a useful tool for understanding various aspects of human nature as well as a therapeutic tool for ameliorating various conditions. In fact, music therapy in various forms is a widespread treatment for a host of problems from pain management to mood disorders to developmental issues. Other than it’s use as a therapeutic tool, music also seems to be beneficial in cognitive development as well.
This is yet another reason why our current policies and attitudes about education and achievement are flawed. The folks over at the Cognitive Daily science blog had a nice post recently about evidence that musical training may actually improve academic and intellectual performance in children. It suggests that in correlational analysis, children who had a year or more of music training outperformed those who didn’t. I think music education is one of the most important types of cognitive training that we can give young people, similar to learning languages other than one’s native tongue. What’s more, some evidence has suggested that learning to play an instrument and even basic understanding of music theory is tied to improved mathematical ability. Of course it’s possible that those with superior mathematical ability are biased toward music and that it’s something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. However, teaching toward the test as seems to be the pattern since the implementation of No Child Left Behind, apparently does very little to actually promote real intellectual development.
A different example of the therapeutic power of music was recently reported through Science Daily. A particular a method of music education, originally pioneered by Carmina Burana composer Carl Orff, is now being used in to help in autistic children. UCLA researchers have been using the Orff-Schulwerk to aid children with autism spectrum disorders with emotional empathy. By pairing the innate tendency of children to clap, rhyme, play a beat, or sing with presentation of emotional cues, these researchers are working to help children with autism spectrum disorders recognize emotional signals in others.
Between its power to help bridge divides between different nations and peoples, to its benefit in cognitive development and its utility in therapeutic settings, music is so much more than sound coming out of a box.
My picks of some choice things going on around town this weekend:
Friday - 8/7
Ruthie Foster @ the Ark in Ann Arbor
Saturday - 8/8
Chickenfoot w/Back Door Slam @ the Fillmore
Tori Amos @ Detroit Opera House
The Trews @ the Magic Stick
I thought it worthwhile to mention how much music helps me deal with these hurdles and their emotional consequences – most of which make for great lessons in then end, but while one’s going through it, well. . . not so much. Like exercise, I find that music can help to keep me out of a funk, and I’ve never enjoyed hitting the gym or working out without the distractionand motivating aid of music. Although I find music to be invaluable in my own life, I have to wonder how impactful music is in others’ lives.
So my question is this: how valuable is music really? I’ve argued here before that human beings have an intrinsic connection to music, but is music as beneficial or impactful as I think?
A couple of weeks ago I interviewed renowned producer and musician Don Was in advance of his second ‘Super Session’ at the 2009 Concert of Colors. During the interview I asked about the recent song and video recorded by Was with Iranian pop superstar Andy Madadian and Jon Bon Jovi along with Richie Sambora, and producer John Shanks. They had recorded a cover of Ben E. King’s classic song ‘Stand By Me’ as a message of solidarity to the people of Iran from the world. Among the more powerful moments is when Bon Jovi sings in Farsi – another example of music bridging a long-standing cultural divide. When I asked Was about the reception and feedback he’d gotten from people living in Iran, he said, “Music matters - music makes a difference in people’s lives.” He said that between satellite, Voice of America, and BBC, a lot of people in Iran had seen it and had relayed their gratitude to Was and Madadian. That really struck me as a great example of the power of song – these musicians recorded a message of support to people half a world away, and it was heard and appreciated. Regardless of the policies and politics of governments, music can bring people together and make them feel less alone.
The idea of music’s potential and power as a force for social change is hardly new. One only needs to look at the 1960s and even this decade to see what music can achieve in terms of altering conscious perception of the world and one’s place in it. Other than the emotional impact of music, what kind of power can music have on an individual level? A number of studies have shown that music can benefit cognitive development in children, although not in the Baby Mozart sense. I’m doubtful that putting a baby in front of a television has much benefit on brain or cognitive development. Rather, young children interacting with music, playing rhythms, learning basic theory, and learning to play an instrument all appear beneficial.
One of I wouldn’t do what I do if I didn’t think it mattered, and it’s gratifying to see more and more scientifically derived evidence that backs this up. In my last column I mentioned that human beings are hard wired to desire to change their state of consciousness. I’ve also remarked in this column before that human beings are the only primates hard wired for music and rhythms. Perhaps this is why it stands as such a useful tool for understanding various aspects of human nature as well as a therapeutic tool for ameliorating various conditions. In fact, music therapy in various forms is a widespread treatment for a host of problems from pain management to mood disorders to developmental issues. Other than it’s use as a therapeutic tool, music also seems to be beneficial in cognitive development as well.
This is yet another reason why our current policies and attitudes about education and achievement are flawed. The folks over at the Cognitive Daily science blog had a nice post recently about evidence that musical training may actually improve academic and intellectual performance in children. It suggests that in correlational analysis, children who had a year or more of music training outperformed those who didn’t. I think music education is one of the most important types of cognitive training that we can give young people, similar to learning languages other than one’s native tongue. What’s more, some evidence has suggested that learning to play an instrument and even basic understanding of music theory is tied to improved mathematical ability. Of course it’s possible that those with superior mathematical ability are biased toward music and that it’s something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. However, teaching toward the test as seems to be the pattern since the implementation of No Child Left Behind, apparently does very little to actually promote real intellectual development.A different example of the therapeutic power of music was recently reported through Science Daily. A particular a method of music education, originally pioneered by Carmina Burana composer Carl Orff, is now being used in to help in autistic children. UCLA researchers have been using the Orff-Schulwerk to aid children with autism spectrum disorders with emotional empathy. By pairing the innate tendency of children to clap, rhyme, play a beat, or sing with presentation of emotional cues, these researchers are working to help children with autism spectrum disorders recognize emotional signals in others.
Between its power to help bridge divides between different nations and peoples, to its benefit in cognitive development and its utility in therapeutic settings, music is so much more than sound coming out of a box.
My picks of some choice things going on around town this weekend:
Friday - 8/7
Ruthie Foster @ the Ark in Ann Arbor
Saturday - 8/8
Chickenfoot w/Back Door Slam @ the Fillmore
Tori Amos @ Detroit Opera House
The Trews @ the Magic Stick
Have a great weekend y’all!!
WERD!!
-drew
