It is common practice for parents to expose their children to music as young as possible, even in the womb. This exposure is driven by the belief that listening to music at a young age will develop musical skills. Does listening to music, separate from physical practice, enhance the learning process?
Studies have shown that observing others perform physical tasks can improve motor skills, but it was undecided if listening to music had any similar effects. A 2012 study tested 36 non-musicians to explore this concept. They were taught to play a 15 note melody, and after 48 hours were split into 2 groups. One group participated in passive listening, sitting down to listen to the piece they learned for 20 minutes. The other group did puzzles and listened to nature sounds instead.
One week later the participants returned to play the piece with no warmups. Results showed that the passive listening group played more accurate and precise than the puzzle group. The findings suggest that listening to music can be a valuable tool for learning music.
Photo Credit: Soundtrap c/o Unsplash
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