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Research has shown that music can lessen the impact of depression and anxiety. In fact, a study done in 2019 found that college students who listened to classical music every day for two months lowered their levels of anxiety significantly.
So, with that being said. Wouldn't it make sense that learning to play a classical instrument such as the piano would also be good for your mental health?
"Sometimes I can only groan, and suffer, and pour out my despair at the piano!"
- Frederic Chopin
In this post we are going to investigate the ways learning piano is good for us.
The Effects of Pets and Music on Humans
Interacting with animals has been shown to decrease levels of cortisol (a stress-related hormone) and lower blood pressure. Research has shown that simply petting a dog lowers the stress hormone cortisol, while the social interaction between people and their dogs actually increases levels of the feel-good hormone oxytocin (the same hormone that bonds mothers to babies).
Studies have also shown that the company of a pet can help people who are living with depression. Animals tend to offer unlimited affection and companionship, lift spirits and lower stress.
Here's where it gets interesting!
Music can have almost the exact same effects on humans as owning a pet! Studies have found that listening to music can help calm your nervous system and lower cortisol levels, both of which can help reduce stress by helping you to release emotion and decrease anxiety.
Research also shows music therapy can be used to help combat depression and heal trauma, and listening to music has been shown to reduce heart rate, lower blood pressure and decrease stress levels.
"Prayer is when you talk to God. Meditation is when you're listening. Playing the piano allows you to do both at the same time."
- Kelsey Grammer
Learning the Piano as an Adult is Good for Your Memory
If you decide to learn the piano as an adult, there are actually a lot of benefits for your brain that you may not have even thought about.
Playing piano is particularly beneficial in 3 areas of the brain: the motor, visual and auditory cortices.
Just like a physical workout, disciplined and structured piano practice strengthens these areas, which allows pianists to better apply them to other activities. Recent research has found that anyone who starts to learn an instrument, even at an older age, shows some kind of increased brain function, especially when it came to things like memory.
"I do a so-called trip into myself: I sit down at the piano and the melody might start to evolve from my playing or then I might start to sing it."
- Enya
Studies show that music stimulates the brain in a way no other activity does. While playing a piece on the piano, you are adding new neural connections, which primes your brain for other forms of communication. Learning to play music activates both the left and right brain at the same time, and the activation of both hemispheres can improve memory. Don't hesitate to try out some piano apps to help with this learning.
A study at Northwestern University found that elderly people experienced memory clarity by playing the piano occasionally. The study has compared playing the piano to staying “mentally fit”.
Learning Piano Builds Brain Power
Breakthroughs in brain imaging have shown that playing the piano strengthens the bridge between the right and left hemispheres of the brain, and makes the connections in the frontal lobe much more efficient. The exciting thing about the studies into how learning piano benefits your brain is that many of the studies are still relatively new, meaning we are still only finding out how brilliant learning Piano is for your brain!
"As long as you as an individual... can convince yourself that in order to move forward as best you can you have to be optimistic, you can be described as 'one of the faithful,' one of those people who can say, 'Well, look, something's going to happen! Let's just keep trying. Let's not give up."
- Tom Hanks
An older study you might find interesting took place in 1995 by Gottfried Schlaug.
This study looked at the impact of playing the piano before reaching seven years old. It found that the “corpus callosum” or the axons that connect both sides of the brain, was unusually thick in the child pianists. Schlaug’s work had some sceptics to start with, and for one thing, people claimed that there might be confusion between cause and effect. The corpus callosum might have been bigger initially in those subjects. However, further studies have given yet more insight.
Schlaug studied further, and while at Harvard Medical School was able to observe actual increases in brain capacity and the size of the corpus callosum among children who took up instruments. Specifically, two-handed instruments such as the piano were those that caused the most benefit. Having to play something different with both hands seems to sharpen the mind and build that brainpower.
How Does Learning to Play the Piano Benefit Your Mental Health?
In conclusion, playing the piano, learning piano theory or doing any mindful activity that demands our attention, is not just a temporary fix. Playing the piano allows us to rid ourselves of these negative thoughts and feelings associated with mental health disorders such as PTSD, Anxiety and depression by allowing us to process and channel what we are experiencing into something beautiful, music.
Another way it can help is by creating a social outlet, some people may attend lessons, join a band or even an orchestra. As a previous student of psychology, I know how important friendship is to our mental well-being. After all according to Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs,” love and belonging are among the most important things humans need. At the end of the day, we are all social creatures.
All of the evidence in this post shows how many benefits you can get out of learning how to play the piano, but the benefits and experience are slightly different for everyone who takes up the hobby. You might find that the piano gives you a social benefit, or you might find that it gives you alone time to escape. I hope this helps you find what you are looking for.
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