Learning music counteracts ageing

Learning a musical instrument helps counteract some of the effects of ageing, a study has found.

The years spent learning music help "fine-tune" the nervous system, boosting memory and the ability to pick out speech against background noise.

"Difficulty hearing speech in noise is among the most common complaints of older adults, but age-related hearing loss only partially accounts for this impediment that can lead to social isolation and depression," said Dr Nina Kraus, at Northwestern University.

"It's well known that adults with virtually the same hearing profile can differ dramatically in their ability to hear speech in noise."

To find out why, the researchers at the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory carried out memory and speech tests on 18 musicians and 19 non-musicians aged between 45 and 65. These included ones which tested the ability to remember what is heard (auditory memory) and what is seen (visual memory).

The musicians – who began playing an instrument at age nine or earlier and consistently played an instrument throughout their lives – bested the non-musician group in every test except those on visual working memory, where both groups showed nearly identical ability.

Dr Kraus said the musicians' experience of extracting meaningful sounds from a complex soundscape - and of remembering sound sequences – boosted the development of hearing skills.

She said: "Sound is the stock in trade of the musician in much the same way that a painter of portraits is keenly attuned to the visual attributes of the paint that will convey his or her subject.

"If the materials that you work with are sound, then it is reasonable to suppose that all of your faculties involved with taking it in, holding it in memory and relating physically to it should be sharpened.

"Music experience bolsters the elements that combat age-related communication problems."

The study findings are published in the journal PLoS One.

This article was published on Thu 12 May 2011