Music: It's in your head, changing your brain

Michael Jackson was on to something when he sang that "A-B-C" is "simple as "Do Re Mi." Music helps kids remember basic facts such as the order of letters in the alphabet, partly because songs tap into fundamental systems in our brains that are sensitive to melody and beat.

That's not all: when you play music, you are exercising your brain in a unique way.

"I think there's enough evidence to say that musical experience, musical exposure, musical training, all of those things change your brain," says Dr. Charles Limb, associate professor of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins University. "It allows you to think in a way that you used to not think, and it also trains a lot of other cognitive facilities that have nothing to do with music."

Very interesting article continued at link.

What kind of music do you like?  We can have a social discussion about musical taste, as well as discussing subjects brought up in the article.  

I grew up in a musical family mainly playing and singing country music.  Although one of my uncles had a big swing band with 16 musicians when I was a child. 

My husband and I had several bands in the past.  Today we have circled back to mainly playing music and singing with the family. 

We have a son-in-law who teaches music at the studio in their home.  I met our son-in-law who was playing in a band before our daughter met him.  First time he saw my daughter we were dancing together and he thought she and I were a couple. They have been married six years this month.

May 27, 2012 -- 10:32AM, drawout wrote:

birds can dance  www.upi.com/Odd_News/2009/05/01/Research... 

My cockatiel lives for music.He loves jazz, classical and pop music. I Love hanging out with a fellow music lover. He has been spoiled by my collection of vinyl LPs. He just sits there quietly when I play a CD or MP3 and suddenly tweets exitedly when I put on a record. He contributes to the music,especially Jazz.

Sweet Drawout! My thousands of LPs sit flat on the shelves and don't get much play.

Here is a video of Snowball, the cockatiel in action. There are plenty more videos on You Tube of Snowball dancing to different songs.  I went for a shorter clip.  Snowball also like to "sing" with the music too.