15 Reasons to Take lessonS

1. Develop a Valuable Musical Talent

Shinichi Suzuki, the “grandfather” of child music education and creator of the world-renown “Suzuki method”, strongly advocated that children are not born with musical talents, but rather they are developed, just like learning a native language, through early-age training. By taking music lessons, you will be receiving the gift of music appreciation that will become a valuable and cherished asset for a lifetime as a medium for satisfying personal achievement and entertainment.

2. Build Self-Esteem

Taking voice lessons or learning an instrument builds a personal morale from working diligently at a skills and succeeding. You get positive, individual attention in private and small-group lessons, which fosters self-esteem and self-worth in the student by showing them that they are worthy of personal attention and that others believe in their success.

3. Learn Study Skills

In the course of singing lessons, students learn many study and memorization skills that easily transfer over to other subject areas to help them succeed in school and life. Studying music will help students discover their own best individual learning styles, giving them a head start on the independent learning skills they will need in more advanced academics.

4. Learn Focus

Regular music lessons and practice sessions help students develop advanced levels of concentration, determination, self-discipline, and responsibility to regularly practice, while working on skills to reach short- and long-term goals. These are the rare personality traits that more than any else will ensure success in all other areas of life. 

5. Increase Brain Function

Many studies have shown that music instruction helps students develop advanced complex hand-eye, hand-to-hand, and right-left brain coordination that greatly increases their ability for multi-task and complex brain activity, spatial cognition, and fine motor skills activities such as typing and writing. Many of the world’s greatest minds were honed by their classical music playing and education.

6. Increase Mathematical Skills

Studies have also shown that music instruction helps students develop practical science and mathematical skills - counting, pattern recognition and recall, geometry, ratios and proportions, fractions, sequences, timekeeping and pacing, acoustics, etc.

7. Build Character

Studies have shown that students who study classical music (1) develop stronger moral character, (2) are more likely to score high in their classes and standardized tests, and (3) are less likely to engage in substance abuse or criminal behavior.

8. Increase Intelligence

Studies have shown that children who take private piano or voice lessons develop higher IQ scores than those who do not. (Forbes)

9. Increase Listening Skills

Studies have shown that trained musicians are much better at discerning subtle speech inflections and thereby “reading between the lines” of what a person says than those without musical training.

10. Improve Speaking and Communication

Voice lessons have also been shown to cause a significant improvement in the quality of the speaking voice including improving clarity, tone, diction, and expression. Voice students also work on improving their facial and body expressions, eye contact, and confidence, and become accustomed to singing in foreign languages.

11. Develop Presentation and Leadership Skills

Face-to-face performance training and experience gained from music lessons teach students strategies for preparing and confidently delivering presentations in front of strangers, peers, and critics. Poise and confidence in front of others foster leadership and social skills.

12. Develop Creativity and Artistic Awareness

Creativity and the ability to “think outside the box” have been praised as important characteristics of successful professionals in all areas. Music lessons help students develop and use their creativity and artistic skills in a structured, universally-appreciated way. Music will remain a legitimate and appreciated medium to keep their minds open and creative.

13. Connect with Others Through Music

Music has often been called a “universal language” for its incredible ability to transcend language, and cultural and time constraints to communicate thoughts, ideas, emotions, and impressions. Learning the “language” of fine music opens the door to an endless library of musical stories, portraits, essays, manifestos, and poetry that has provided inspiration for centuries to our world’s greatest minds. More than any other medium, vocal music excels in communicating to and touching the souls of men and women and is a manifestation of humanity’s collective conscience and social heritage.

14. Express Yourself Through Music

Learning to sing opens a new and deeply powerful medium of emotional education and expression as the student learns to “give voice” to the emotions of the composers and their own. When the student participates in the production of quality music and really understands and connects with it, the intellect and the emotion are profoundly stimulated, and the student comes away from the experience with an enriched and more meaningful life.

15. Heal Yourself With Music

Music has long been a considered soothing and healing practice. While not all popular music available today can be said to contribute to peace of mind and body, studies have shown that classical and modern music helps in a number of ways including lowering blood pressure, soothing stress and chronic pain, and promoting healthy breathing. Fine music gives the student a forum to cope with life’s challenging emotions and promotes healthy and balanced thought and body.

(Music Therapy as a medical treatment is a legitimate and growing profession used for improving the quality of life of people on all levels, improving social skills, and treating a variety of conditions from physical and speech disorders to depression, behavior problems, and psychiatric conditions.)