#sound processing

Community music programs enhance brain function in at-risk children

A Northwestern University study provides the first direct evidence that a community music program for at-risk youth has a biological effect on children’s developing nervous systems.

Two years of music lessons improved the precision with which the children’s brains distinguished similar speech sounds, a neural process that is linked to language and reading skills. One year of training, however, was insufficient to spark changes in the nervous system.

“This research demonstrates that community music programs can literally ‘remodel’ children’s brains in a way that improves sound processing, which could lead to better learning and language skills,” said study lead author Nina Kraus, the Hugh Knowles professor of communication sciences in the School of Communication and of neurobiology and physiology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern.

“Music Enrichment Programs Improve the Neural Encoding of Speech in At-Risk Children,” published in the Journal of Neuroscience, is one of the few studies to evaluate biological changes following participation in an existing, successful music education program.