A BIT OF THE HISTORY OF MUSIC
Music has been in existence from time immemorial. The history of music spans from the early men, who used various means to make sound of music. Ranging from hitting of sticks, clapping of hands, whistling, hitting some parts of the body etc to produce harmonious sounds. Later, primitive or locally made instruments like drums, flutes, whistles etc, were introduced.


WHAT IS MUSIC?
Music can be defined as a harmony between sounds (tones and tunes), rhythm and beats.
Music is also any pleasing or interesting sound made with musical instruments, along with singing. It is also a form of art, that is created by organizing pitches, rhythms and sounds. Music can be made, using musical instruments and sometimes singing with the voice. It is also playing or singing a particular tune, note or tone, with the voice or by using a musical instrument.

Listening to music benefits us individually and collectively. Here’s what researchers have to say about the power of music to improve our physical, mental, and emotional health.


THE BENEFITS OF LISTENING TO MUSIC

 1. Music is food for the soul.


2. Music soothes and calms your mind.


3. It can elevate your mood.


4. It helps to ease and relieve tension and pressure.


5. It helps to relax your nerves.


6. It helps you to experience a sound sleep.


7. It alleviates depression and cures anxiety.


8. It helps to sharpen your imagination and creativity.


9. It switches your mood to a more positive mode.


10. It helps you to be calm and calculated.


11. It helps to create a good atmosphere of positivity and possibilities. It helps to clear your thoughts of negativity.


12. It removes worries and helps you keep a positive disposition.


13. It helps to create an atmosphere of serenity.


14. It helps to keep you active and ready to go.


15. It helps you to be more productive.


16. It keeps the heart healthy. Researchers have found out that listening to music helps the blood flow easily in the body, when music is played. 


17. Music reduces stress.


18. It relieves symptoms of depression.


19. Music stimulates memories.


20. Music helps to ease and manage pain. .

23. Music helps people lose weight because it helps them to eat less.


24. Music connects people together. For example, people come together to do the following: 
  • national anthems connect crowds at sporting events
  • protest songs stir a sense of shared purpose during marches
  • hymns build group identity in houses of worship
  • love songs help prospective partners bond during courtship
  • lullabies enable parents and infants to develop secure attachments

25. Music can help you learn easily and better. It helps to stimulate your brain. Music helps to improve people’s mental wellbeing. Researchers have found out that people are more motivated to learn, when they are expected to listen to a song as their reward for reading.


26. It can improve memory. Music has a positive effect on your ability to memorize.
I'm a study, researchers gave people tasks that required them to read and then recall short lists of words. Those who were listening to music performed more than those who worked in silence or with less noise.

The same study tracked how fast people could perform simple processing tasks — matching numbers to geometrical shapes — and a similar benefit showed up. Mozart helped people complete the task faster and more accurately.


27. Music affects and changes your mood. It helps you regulate your feeling and mood.


28. Music can help reduce anxiety. 

There are lots of evidence that listening to music can help calm you, where you might feel anxious about something. Researchers have shown that people in rehab after a stroke, are more relaxed once they’ve listened to music for an hour. Music is therapeutical. 


30. Music helps to alleviate depression.


31. Music makes you happier.


32. Music helps Improve your verbal intelligence. “Music is to the soul what words are to the mind.” – Modest Mouse. After only one month of music lessons (in rhythm, pitch, melody and voice), a study at York University showed that 90% of children between the ages of 4 and 6 had a significant increase in verbal intelligence. Researcher Sylvain Moreno suggests that the music training had a “transfer effect” which enhanced the children’s ability to understand words and explain their meaning. Other research found that musically trained adult women and musically trained children performed more than those without music training on verbal memory tests. No matter whether you’re an adult or a child, if you want to boost your verbal skills, try taking music lessons!


33. Music helps to boost your creative. It makes you to be a creative person.


34. Music raises IQ and helps you in your academic performance. “Music can change the world because it can change people.” – Bono.

In a study, 6-year-olds who took keyboard or singing lessons in small groups for 36 weeks had significantly larger increases in IQ and standardized educational test results than children who took either drama lessons or no lessons. The singing group did the best.

To help your children achieve academic excellence, encourage them to sing or learn to play an instrument.


35. Music keeps your brain healthy at old age.

“Music is the true breath of life. We eat so we won’t starve to death. We sing so we can hear ourselves live.” – Yasmina Khadra. 

A study with healthy older adults found that those with ten years or more of musical experience scored higher in cognitiveests than musicians with one to nine years of musical study. The non-musicians scored the lowest. “Since studying an instrument requires years of practice and learning, it may create alternate connections in the brain that could compensate for cognitive declines as we get older,” says lead researcher Brenda Hanna-Pladdy.

Plato had it right when he said, “Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul.” No matter whether you’re young or old, healthy or sick, happy or sad, music can improve the quality of your life in numerous ways.