Music and Memory

For those readers who love music, here is another reason to continue listening, playing and making music. Music provides a way to connect with people with Alzheimer's.
We know that music is a powerful source for healing. Plato and Aristotle believed that music could heal both the body and soul. Music was one of the arts that all people should be involved in!
This belief is being borne out by modern research. Studies have shown that music therapy can provide a number of physical and psychological benefits including reducing pain, stress, rapid heartbeat, depression and sleeplessness.
And now it appears that music therapy-which involves engaging in musical activities with a certified professional may provide a way to reach people with Alzheimer's disease.
According to an article in the New York Times, http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/the-songs-they-cant-forget/researchers and clinicians have found that when all other means of communication have shut down, people can still remember and respond to music. When listening to familiar songs, for example, people with dementia can relate better to others, move more easily and even experience joy.
One explanation as to why music memory is better preserved than verbal memory is because-unlike language-music is not seated in one specific area of the brain but processed across many parts. "You can't rub out music unless the brain is completely gone." Alicia Clari, a music therapist, told the New York Times.
Another good reason why I and others should keep involved in music. Worth considering.