Effects of Piano, Singing, and Rhythm Instruction on the Spatial Reasoning of At-Risk Children

Previous research has demonstrated that preschool children score higher on spatial tests following piano instruction. Three studies were conducted to answer three questions regarding these effects: (1) Which cognitive processes are enhanced by piano instruction? (2) Do different types of instruction have differential effects? (3) Are these effects durable and generalizable? In Study 1, at-risk preschool children were provided with weekly piano instruction, computer instruction, or no instruction for two years. Children were preand post-tested using a large battery of standardized cognitive tests. Results indicated that children who received piano instruction scored significantly higher than control children on tests requiring spatial and/or temporal abilities. In Study 2, children received instruction in piano, singing, or rhythm instruments. A control group of children received no instruction. We administered the same battery of tests as in Study 1. All music groups scored higher than controls on spatial and temporal tasks. The rhythm group scored higher than the piano and singing groups on temporal tasks. The piano and singing groups’ scores did not differ. Study 3 compared the scores of the children who received music lessons to those of Head Start children who did not receive instruction, at-risk children who were not enrolled in Head Start, and middle-income elementary school children. The music groups continued to score higher than all other groups on spatial and temporal tasks two years after instruction ended. The rhythm group continued to score higher than controls on temporal and mathematics tests. No effects were found for verbal, memory, or reading tests.