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.

Majorities of both parents and teachers see a myriad of social-emotional, academic, 21st century skill, community, and physical and health benefits from music education—especially social-emotional benefits ~ NAMM Foundation and Grunwald Associates LLC (2015). Striking a Chord: The Public’s Hopes and Beliefs for K–12 Music Education in the United States: 2015.

Music has been found to stimulate parts of the brain, and studies have demonstrated that music enhances the memory of Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, including a study conducted at UC Irvine, which showed that scores on memory tests of Alzheimer’s patients improved when they listened to classical music. ~ Cheri Lucas, Education.com, “Boost Memory and Learning with Music,” pbs.org.

Students at schools with excellent music programs had higher English test scores across the country than students in schools with low-quality music programs; this was also true when considering mathematics. ~ Journal for Research in Music Education, June 2007; Dr. Christopher Johnson, Jenny Memmott

Studies have shown that young children who take keyboard lessons have greater abstract reasoning abilities than their peers, and that these abilities improve over time with sustained training in music. ~ Rauscher, F.H. , & Zupan, M., “Classroom keyboard instruction improves kindergarten children’s spatial-temporal performance: A field experiment” Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 15 , 215-228.2000.

In the past, secondary students who participated in a music group at school reported the lowest lifetime and current use of all substances (tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs). ~ 5 VH1: Save the Music. “The Benefits of Music Education.” VH1: Save the Music. Accessed February 24, 2015. .

Research indicates the brain of a musician, even a young one, works differently than that of a nonmusician. “There’s some good neuroscience research that children involved in music have larger growth of neural activity than people not in music training. When you’re a musician and you’re playing an instrument, you have to be using more of your brain.” ~ Dr. Eric Rasmussen, chair of the Early Childhood Music Department at the Peabody Preparatory of The John Hopkins University, quoted in “The Benefits of Music Education,” pbs.org, Laura Lewis Brown.

Music enhances fine motor skills, or the ability to use small, acute muscle movements to write, use a computer, and perform other physical tasks. ~ Forgeard, 2008; Hyde, 2009; Schlaug et al. 2005, “The Effects of Musical Training on Structural Brain Development A Longitudinal Study,” The Neurosciences and Music III: Disorders and Plasticity: Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 1169: 182–186 (2009).

“I believe arts education in music, theater, dance, and the visual arts is one of the most creative ways we have to find the gold that is buried just beneath the surface. They (children) have an enthusiasm for life a spark of creativity, and vivid imaginations that need training – training that prepares them to become confident young men and women.” ~ Richard W. Riley, Former US Secretary of Education

Children who study a musical instrument are more likely to excel in all of their studies, work better in teams, have enhanced critical thinking skills, stay in school, and pursue further education. ~ Arte Music Academy. “Statistical benefits of music in education.” Statistical-Benefits-Of-Music-In-Education. Accessed July 17, 2014.

Musical training is thought to improve nervous system function by focusing attention on meaningful acoustic cues, and these improvements in auditory processing cascade to language and cognitive skills. ~ Nina Kraus, Jessica Slater, Elaine C. Thompson, Jane Hornickel, Dana L. Strait, Trent Nicol, Travis White-Schwoch, “Music Enrichment Programs Improve the Neural Encoding of Speech in At-Risk Children,” Journal of Neuroscience, September 3, 2014.

Musicians 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.

The College Entrance Examination Board found that students involved in public school music programs scored 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)