Music for the brain
Ryan Sutcliffe says learning a musical instrument later in life could be a gamechanger to slow the inevitable decline in brain function and perhaps even defer the onset of dementia
The Massey doctoral psychology researcher is seeking 60 people aged over 60 in the Manawatu¯ to take part in the study to determine if learning a musical instrument in later life can affect cognition.
Ryan plays the guitar and writes and performs his own songs, and his dream project combines his musical and academic interests to test whether music lessons can help maintain brain health in ageing.
He will be offering free guitar lessons and a free guitar to 30 people randomly assigned to one group. The other 30 in the control group will take part in a music club involving listening to and discussing a wide variety of music, sharing favourite music and doing music quizzes.
“What I’m interested in is how we can use music in successful brain ageing. The rationale for this study is that by learning a musical instrument, we can reduce chances of having further brain degeneration than already might occur in healthy ageing.”
When you learn an instrument, it’s the combined motor aspect of using your hands, listening, visual and concentration.
“When you tie all of these things together, you’re actually really exercising your brain, which is important for the maintenance of healthy brain function.”
“The idea is that music tuition could be an early stage intervention to bolster the brain’s inherent neuroplasticity.”
Both groups will undergo a noninvasive neurological session before and after the music lessons or club activities. He will record brain activity, using an imaging method called functional nearinfrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).
Prospective participants must have no history of head injury, stroke, Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. Participants will receive either a new guitar to keep, or a gift card of equivalent value. Participants must not currently play an instrument, consider themselves a musician, or have had more than three years of earlier music training.
They will be asked to complete an online questionnaire to collect demographic information.They then attend one of two weekly groups — either the music appreciation and discussion club or the guitar learning programme.
“These lessons will provide participants with a basic introduction to contemporary guitar playing, with an emphasis on song learning and performance, as opposed to music theory,” he says.
The project is funded by Brain Research New Zealand and is a collaborative project between Massey and the University of Otago.
To volunteer, contactRyan to register: rsutcliffe14@gmail.com