The Importance of Music

How important is music? I believe music is one of the most important things humans can learn for the following reasons: social connectivity, emotional impact, strength of mind, emotional relief, mental health, and mental discipline. There are many other reasons by which music is important, however, these are the things I'd like to focus on. Understanding and practicing music in my experience, has always induced positive connotations; particularly in the areas listed above.

Let me begin by explaining the power musical knowledge has on the mind in relation to: mental heath, discipline, and strength of mind. As we already know the brain is a muscle, and like any muscle in our body, it needs exercise to stay in shape. Learning an instrument, and musical practice is a great way to keep your mind exercised. Like any other form of exercise, music takes hard work and dedication. This allows you to improve your minds ability to stay disciplined and focus. You may find that mental discipline in one area, such as music, may also improve your ability to focus on other tasks as well. A disciplined mind is a strong mind, and a strong mind can use its strengths in many applications that can also promote strong mental health. If you do some research, it has been found that, learning an instrument greatly reduces your risks for things such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. I encourage you to do your own research as there is a lot of valuable information on the matter; and it will promote your own mental health.

Learning and listening to music also has a profound impact on your emotions, as you may have already discovered in your life. I feel confident in saying that, most of us have heard a song at some point that has made us cry, or feel some kind of angst. This effect can happen regardless of the emotional status we are in. This happens no matter if the music puts us in that emotional state, or if we are already in that emotional state and the music helps connect us to that emotion. Similarly, if you are the creator of said musical piece, it helps you to free your emotions and truly connect with them. For example, if you are feeling angry, listening to or writing angry music will not only help you connect with that emotion, but free you from it as well. With an added bonus, your emotional status combined with music may also allow you to connect with friends who have similar feelings, experiences, and tastes.

Connecting socially with music seems like commonplace in today's society. With the invention of things like mp3 players, and social media, people connect through music all the time. This is great for making friends and relating to others. I have made many friends in my life solely on the basis of the type of music we like. This naturally led to having people I could depend on when things got tough, or simply when I needed to have someone to hang out with. There is also a kind of silent social connection that comes with writing music that others hear. When a musician writes music, either intentionally or unintentionally that musician connects with everyone that hears their music. This leads me to believe that when people listen to an artist they really like, they tend to have a strong bond with said artist that the artist may not even know about. I also feel that this bond exists with the artist as well. Being a musician, I like to believe when I write music and others have the chance to hear it, I am sharing with my audience a piece of me and who I am that allows me to connect with everyone who hears me. There is also the added benefit of making friends as a musician that creates even tighter bonds then simply listening to the same music. It should come to no surprise that music helps in creating social connections with almost anyone.

It is my hope that everyone who can, should learn an instrument and study music regardless if it is chosen to be a hobby or a professional aspiration. Music has a profound influence on many things in life and is hopefully embraced by everyone as much as possible. Keep in mind music's ability to encourage your minds growth in strength, emotional strength, and health. Being a musician has truly helped me in my life and has made me a better person; I hope it can do the same for you.