Make your own kind of music
It’s never too late to learn an instrument and the benefits of discovering the magic of making music later in life can be wide-reaching says Hazel Davis
Looking around, I’m the oldest person in the room by at least 25 years and I’m smiling so hard I can’t keep my lips taut enough to play properly, but I’m having the most fun I’ve had in a long time. Since I fulfilled a lifelong ambition to learn how to play the trumpet around six months ago, I’ve never been happier. Granted, I already play the violin and enjoy singing in a choir, but the idea of learning a whole new instrument at such a late stage seemed a bit ludicrous. Until I happened upon a local free-for-all wind band, that welcomed me with open arms, assuring me (somewhat optimistically) that there was no such thing as a wrong note. I bought myself a cheap trumpet, got myself a beginner’s book and off I went. I’ve never looked back and a few weeks ago you could have heard me parping happily through Tequila at an end-of-term concert.
The truth, as I’ve discovered, is that it really is never too late to learn a new musical instrument. Ok, you might struggle to bag yourself a place in the Berlin Philharmonic if you don’t start until you’re 35 (though, never say never) but there’s no age limit on learning an instrument. In fact, studies have suggested that playing a musical instrument in later life has a positive impact on cognitive function, specifically better connectivity between auditory and sensorimotor areas of the brain. This means an increase in reaction times and a potential greater awareness of other senses.
We all know that music and wellbeing are linked. How many of us have felt the collective love in a mosh pit or welled up at a kids’ carol concert? But the benefits to learning to play music are well documented, too. “Learning to play by ear helps memory, as you have to remember the musical sequence and then the physical actions of how to produce it,” says Dr Alexandra Lamont, senior lecturer in Music Psychology at Keele University. “Coordination is a big part of the mental stimulation – learning to be in time, doing something with one hand to the other, and so on, all require fine motor coordination. Synchronising ( playing together) through music is also held to enhance empathy, so it helps with emotional connections between people, and making music definitely addresses loneliness and social isolation if you do it with other people.”
In fact, picking up an instrument as an adult might even be better, Dr Lamont argues: “My research has shown a lot of people go into music later in life with a more balanced attitude that it is just for them. They
Research found more than 500 benefits associated with musical activities
don’t put as much pressure on themselves or go through the formal processes of exams or competitions,” she says. “There’s also more sense of autonomy as an adult: if you’re paying for your own lessons, you’re much more likely to keep going, or to learn at your own pace, whereas children can sometimes get put into the music learning mill where they’re expected to have a certain amount of lessons, pass exams, and so on.” Researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions at Melbourne Conservatorium of Music surveyed the published research and found more than 500 benefits associated with participating in musical activities. “These benefits concern our wellbeing in a number of different ways: social, emotional, cognitive, spiritual, physical health, quality of life, and so on,” says research fellow, Dr Amanda E Krause.
Dr Krause’s research has found that more adults would engage in music in later life if they have casual ‘drop in’ style opportunities and opportunities that included social circles (with friends, family, etc) as the formal aspect of playing music can be off-putting to a beginner, especially an older one. Thankfully, more and more all-age groups are springing up around the country. UK voluntary music organisation Making Music puts the number of community music groups in the UK at 13,300 – a mixture of everything from small ensembles to large choir groups.
NEW BEGINNINGS
I now play in a weekly beginner wind band (where I’m the only adult), a slightly scary Saturday big band (where I’m the worst player), a choir and two string groups. I also recently completed a two day ‘summer school’ with a bunch of kids and about three other adults. I adore the sense of camaraderie, I love the lack of judgment, of course I love the music and I’m over the moon that I’m finding myself slowly improving on the trumpet in a stress-free environment (with no rapping over the knuckles when I get my scales wrong). During the summer when the weekly rehearsals stopped, I found that I missed it dreadfully.
It’s not always easy, but then things that are worthwhile rarely are. Kasey Wardaugh, 44, from Manchester, first picked up a cello five years ago, having never played any kind of music before. “I had always thought I’d like to give it a go and got sick of hearing myself saying it and not following through,” she says, “so I took the plunge and found myself a teacher.”
Kasey, who now has a two-hour lesson every three weeks, found that at the start she would, “question everything and try and apply some sort of logic to that. I’m working through the ABRSM grades and knowing that six-year-old kids would be sitting the same exam as me and that they could grasp these basics, but I can’t, has been a wee bit frustrating.” However, as her teacher reassures her, “Kids are sponges at that age and they don’t tend to question things – they don’t think about things the same way that adults do.”
With learning anything new, you do have to put the time in and, Kasey says, “I need to split my time between practice and also learning the theory, which can sometimes be tricky. Juggling a full-time job, life admin and friends can also be a challenge.” But, like most of us, Kasey is quick to extol the benefits. “It just gives me so much enjoyment that it naturally impacts on my mental wellbeing,” she says, “Just do it – but don’t watch any kids on YouTube!”