What are the Benefits of Studying Music?
Cognitive
The College Entrance Examination Board found that students who study music score 107 points higher on the SAT's than students with no participation (Profiles of SAT and Achievement Test Takers, The College Board, compiled by the Music Educators National Conference, 2002).
Those that Study Music are found to have superior working memory compared to non-musicians (Berti, et al., 2006; Pallesen et al., "Cognitive Control in Auditory Working Memory Is Enhanced in Musicians," PLOS One, June 15, 2010).
Adults who receive formal music instruction as children have more robust brainstem responses to sound than peers who never participate in music lessons and that the magnitude of the response correlates with how recently training ceased. These results suggest that neural changes accompanying musical training during childhood are retained in adulthood (Skoe, E. & Kraus, N. 2012. A Little Goes a Long Way: How the Adult Brain Is Shaped by Musical Training in Childhood, Journal of Neuroscience, 32, 34, 11510. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1949-12.2012).
Emotional
71% of Americans say that the lessons and habits from music education equip themselves and others to be better team players in their careers (July 2014 Harris Poll).
Those that study music report improved creativity, teamwork, communication, and critical thinking skills. All of which are necessary in their work, regardless of whether they are working in music or other fields (Craft, A. 2001. An Analysis of Research and Literature on Creativity and Education. Report Prepared for the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. Coventry, England. Strategic National Arts Alumni Project, SNAAP. 2010. Forks in the Road: The Many Paths of Arts Alumni: Strategic National Arts Alumni Project 2010 Findings. Bloomington, IN).
Studies show that the emotions patients experience while listening to music have a positive effect on blood vessel function. Music both made study participants feel happier which resulted in increased blood flow in their vascular system (Scott Christ, "20 surprising, science-backed health benefits of music," USA Today, December 17, 2013).
Social
A study by Logeswaran et al. (2009) found that exposure to happy music made participants perceive other’s faces as happier. The most notable effect was seen when participants looked at faces with a neutral expression. (Logeswaran et al., "Crossmodal transfer of emotion by music," Neuroscience Letters, 2009).
80% of Americans believe that studying music has contributed to their level of personal fulfillment and self-actualization (July 2014 Harris Poll).
Playing music can reverse stress at the molecular level, according to studies conducted by Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems (as published in Medical Science Monitor).