Montreal researchers find that music lessons before age
seven create stronger connections in the brain
If you started piano lessons in grade one, or played the
recorder in kindergarten, thank your parents and teachers. Those lessons you
dreaded – or loved – helped develop your brain. The younger you started music
lessons, the stronger the connections in your brain.
A study published last month in the Journal of Neuroscience
suggests that musical training before the age of seven has a significant effect
on the development of the brain, showing that those who began early had
stronger connections between motor regions – the parts of the brain that help
you plan and carry out movements.