“At this time when you are making critical and far-reaching budget and program decisions…I write to bring to your attention the importance of the arts as a core academic subject and part of a complete education for all students. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act defines the arts as a core subject, and the arts play a significant role in children’s development and learning process. The arts can help students become tenacious, team-oriented problem solvers who are confident and able to think creatively.” ~ Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education, Letter to Schools and Community Leaders, 2009.

Young Children who take music lessons show different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year, compared to children who do not receive musical training. ~ Dr. Laurel Trainor, Prof. of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behavior at McMaster University, 2006

Students in top-quality instrumental programs scored 17% higher in mathematics than children in schools without a music program, and 33% higher in mathematics than students in a deficient choral program. ~ Journal for Research in Music Education, June 2007; Dr. Christopher Johnson, Jenny Memmott

Much like expert technical skills, mastery in arts and humanities is closely correlated to a greater understanding of language components. ~ Trei, Lisa. “Musical training helps language processing, studies show.” Stanford News. Accessed February 24, 2015.

Children with learning disabilities or dyslexia who tend to lose focus with more noise could benefit greatly from music lessons. ~ Arete Music Academy. “Statistical benefits of music in education.” Arete Music Academy. Accessed July 17, 2014.

Early childhood training in instrumental music improves the ability to pay attention–visual focus, active listening, and staying on task. ~ Neville, H., et al. (2008). Effects of Music Training on Brain and Cognitive Development in Under-privileged 3- to 5-year-old Children: Preliminary Results. In C. Asbury & B. Rich (Eds.), Learning, Arts, and the Brain: The Dana Consortium Report on Arts and Cognition (pp. 105-116). New York, NY: Dana Press.

Musically trained children performed better in a memory test that is correlated with general intelligence skills such as literacy, verbal memory, visuospatial processing, mathematics, and IQ. ~ Dr. Laurel Trainor, Prof. of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behavior at McMaster University, 2006

Playing an instrument as a kid leads to a sharper mind in old age, according to a new study conducted by Brenda Hanna-Pladdy, a clinical neuropsychologist in Emory’s Department of neurology, and her colleagues. The researchers gave 70 people between the ages of 60 and 83 a battery of tests to measure memory and other cognitive abilities. The researchers found that those who had played an instrument for a decade or longer scored significantly higher on the tests than those with no musical background. ~ Quoted in Diane Cole, “Your Aging Brain Will Be in Better Shape If You’ve Taken Music Lessons,” National Geographic, January 3, 2014.

Regardless of socioeconomic status or school district, students (3rd graders) who participate in high-quality music programs score higher on reading and spelling tests. ~ Hille, Katrin, et al. “Associations between music education, intelligence, and spelling ability in elementary school.” Adv Cogn Psychol 7 (2011): 1–6. Web. Accessed February 24, 2015.

Three in five Americans (61%) said it [musiceducation] provided a disciplined problem solving approach and 59% said it prepared people to manage tasks more successfully. ~ July 2014 Harris Poll

Graduates from music programs report that creativity, teamwork, communication, and critical thinking are skills necessary in their work, regardless of whether they are working in music or other fileds. ~ 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.

Regardless of socioeconomic status or school district, students (3rd graders) who participate in high-quality music programs score higher on reading and spelling tests. ~ Hille, Katrin, et al. “Associations between music education, intelligence, and spelling ability in elementary school.” Adv Cogn Psychol 7 (2011): 1–6. Web. Accessed February 24, 2015.

A Stanford study shows that music engages areas of the brain which are involved with paying attention, making predictions and updating events in our memory. ~ Baker, Mitzi. “Music moves brain to pay attention, Stanford study finds.” Stanford Medicine. Accessed February 24, 2015.

“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.” ~ Victor Hugo

Adults age 60 to 85 without previous musical experience exhibited improved processing speed and memory after just three months of weekly 30-minute piano lessons and three hours a week of practice, whereas the control group showed no changes in these abilities. ~ Nina Kraus, Samira Anderson, “Music Training: An Antidote for Aging?” Hearing Journal, Vol. 66, No. 3, March 2013.

Schools with music programs have an estimated 90.2% graduation rate and 93.9% attendance rate compared to schools without music education, which average 72.9% graduation and 84.9% attendance. ~ The National Association for Music Education. “Music Makes the Grade.” The National Association for Music Education. Accessed February 24, 2015.

Everyday listening skills are stronger in musically-trained children than in those without music training. Significantly, listening skills are closely tied to the ability to: perceive speech in a noisy background, pay attention, and keep sounds in memory. ~ Strait, D.L. and N. Kraus, Biological impact of auditory expertise across the life span: musicians as a model of auditory learning. Hearing Research, 2013.

It is said that the state of mankind improves through music; music not only trains but educates individuals and makes them fit for a life of community. Music is spiritual and mental food, an edifying and educational power. In comparison with sports (the motion of bodies), music (the motion of sounds) belongs to a higher sphere. In extreme cases, one encounters the tenet that music actually elevates man into a higher realm, transforming him into a new form of the human species. ~ Albrecht Riethmüller, “Music Beyond Ethics,” Archiv für Musikwissenschaft, p. 170, Volume 65, Issue 3, 2008.

Young children who take music lessons show different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year, compared to children who do not receive musical training. ~ Arete Music Academy. “Statistical benefits of music in education.” Arete Music Academy. Accessed July 17, 2014.

Young children who take music lessons show different brain development and improved memory over the course of a year, compared to children who do not receive musical training. ~ National Association for Music Education. “The Benefits of the Study of Music.” National Association for Music Education. Accessed July 17, 2014.