|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||
|
You're Never too Old for Music |
|
"You can't teach an old dog new tricks." This age old saying bears no truth when it comes to music. The learning process does not stop when a child becomes an adult. Any person is capable of learning how to read music, play a musical instrument, or appreciate music. Research has not produced any evidence indicating that adults and the elderly do not benefit from musical experience and music lessons. The New Horizons Band created by Dr. Roy Ernst consists primarily of adults between the ages of 60-85 years. Most of these adults have no previous experience with music lessons, and yet, they all learned how to play and perform music well. This anecdote supports the assumption a person's ability to learn music or gain the benefits music has to offer does not have an age limit. However, one condition does need to be considered. As a person becomes older, stereotypically their strength level weakens. In order to learn how to play a musical instrument, they must have the physical abilities that meet the physical demands of the instrument. |
|
Considerable evidence does exist supporting the many benefits of introducing music to children at a young age. There is ever growing evidence that we possess musical abilities at a very young age, and that we have the ability to hear music before we are even born. Young children often show interest in music, and music has been correlated to enhancing the development of other academic areas. Even though many of the research studies involve children, who's to say that music's intellectual advantages are restricted to the young. It is very possible that music has intellectual advantages for the elderly in different ways. Studies have shown that music stimulates various areas of the brain, in particular areas related to spatial reasoning. This stimulation in the elderly may not necessarily increase their IQ, but it may keep their minds sharp and prevent deterioration. |
|
|
|
|
Questions? Comments? Write to kyoshi@mail.utexas.edu |
