How Music Learning Works

 

Our expectations of what adults can manage to do and learn are rising. Many of us are fortunate enough to be able to pick up long-neglected instruments, get our vocal chords moving again or even start something musical by scratch.

We know now that we can still learn, though the experience may feel different from how we remember it being when we were younger. Arthritic fingers can get in the way, but the biggest barrier is probably that same as it is throughout life – lacking confidence that one can make progress.

On this page you'll find two types of information, accounts written by adults about how music learning has been for them and summaries of relevant research findings 

Personal  Accounts

Featured
Patrick: Music Learning

I’ve needed to go as far back as my childhood to explore and establish the roots of my musical journey so far.

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Wendy: Music making and me

In my experience, when life gets hard, or quiet (as now with this lock down), music is there to calm the mind

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Eleanor: Learning to play a musical instrument

In the first group session I seemed to be the only person who could merely produce squeaks out of the instrument and, as I also seemed to be the only person who could barely read music, the idea that I would ever be able to master even a simple tune seemed fairly ludicrous.

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Dave: Music and learning, a case study of taking up a new instrument later in life

I’m in my seventies and a couple of years ago I decided to fulfil an ambition and learn to play the Chapman Stick™

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Research Findings

(coming soon)