Cognitive, Musical and Environmental Correlates of Early Music Instruction

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of early music instruction on music perception skills as well as specific areas of cognitive development (non-verbal/spatial abilities). Participants were 29 children enrolled in beginning music instruction, and 29 children matched in age and gender attending preschool, without formal music lessons. The children were assessed on a music perception task (melody recognition) and a variety of cognitive measures (receptive vocabulary, visual-motor integration, an embedded figures task, and puzzles), prior to beginning music instruction and four months later. The results indicated that preschool children taking music lessons may be a select group; they were more likely to have previous musical experience and additional extra-curricular activities. After four months of music lessons, children in the music group showed the greatest improvement on the music task. A transfer effect was observed primarily for visual-motor skills, with the music group improving significantly on the visual-motor integration task. The findings are discussed as relevant to previous research. Implications for music education are also discussed.