Music as Medicine: What 52 Studies Tell Us About Singing, Playing, and Mental Wellbeing

In 2023, a team of European researchers set out to answer a question that has echoed through centuries of music and philosophy. Does making music, whether singing in a choir, strumming a guitar, or tapping a rhythm genuinely improve mental health and cognitive function? Their answer, published in the European Journal of Public Health, is a confident yes. The team examined 52 peer-reviewed studies published between 2018 and 2022, and the results revealed that music making is one of the most natural and profound ways to support the mind, body, and soul. The evidence is striking. Making music is not simply entertainment or creative self-expression. It appears to be a legitimate form of medicine. Regular engagement with music sharpened memory, attention, and executive function, especially in older adults and individuals showing early signs of cognitive decline. Participants in community choirs and instrumental groups consistently reported reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety, along with a stronger sense of belonging. In physiological studies, group music-making lowered cortisol which is the hormone linked to stress and improved heart rate variability, a key indicator of emotional regulation and cardiovascular health. Even more encouraging is that these effects persisted. The benefits of playing, singing, or drumming continued for weeks and even months after the programs concluded. Music, in other words, is not a fleeting mood lifter but a lasting ally in wellbeing. Among the many findings, the review identified three groups who gained the most from music-making. The first were older adults. For those aged 65 and above, music provided a powerful antidote to both isolation and memory decline. One study involving weekly community drum circles recorded an 18 percent improvement in memory recall after just twelve weeks. The second group were people living with mental health challenges. Participants in community music programs many of them managing depression or anxiety, required fewer therapy sessions and described a renewed sense of vitality and meaning. Music, it seems, provided what medication often could not. The third group were children with developmental or communication difficulties. For young people with autism or ADHD, structured music therapy improved emotional regulation, cooperation, and confidence in social settings. Why does music have this effect? The researchers describe three interconnected reasons. The first is neuroplasticity which is the brain’s ability to change itself. Learning melodies, chords, and rhythms builds and strengthens neural pathways just as physical exercise strengthens muscle. The second is dopamine release. Every time we hit the right note or synchronize with others, the brain releases dopamine which is the chemical that underlies joy, motivation, and reward. The third is social synchrony. When we play or sing together, our breathing, timing, and emotional states begin to align. This physical synchrony fosters trust, empathy, and connection, reducing the loneliness and stress that modern life so often amplifies. In one of the review’s most moving examples, a group of retirees in the United Kingdom with mild cognitive impairment joined a ten-week community orchestra. By the end of the program, their memory scores had risen by 22 percent. But what was more meaningful than the data was what they said. Eight out of ten participants reported feeling “less invisible” in their daily lives. The results of this research reaffirm something that musicians have always intuited. Music heals because it reconnects us to ourselves, to others, and to the mystery of being alive. It unites body and spirit, science and soul. It is mindfulness in motion, emotion made audible. At Lyceum Guitar Academy, we see this every day. Each lesson is more than a technical exercise. It is an encounter with sound as a living force and one that cultivates discipline, emotional intelligence, and inner harmony. The science now supports what every musician feels intuitively: that to play music is to practice wellness. Music, it turns out, is not only a language of art but a medicine for the human condition. Footnote: Viola E, Martorana M, Airoldi C, Meini C, Ceriotti D, De Vito M, De Ambrosi D, Faggiano F. The role of music in promoting health and wellbeing: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Public Health. 2023 Aug 1;33(4):738-745. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckad063. PMID: 37322515; PMCID: PMC10393487.