“The best way to learn,” said Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, “is through the powerful force of rhythm.”
Any one of us who has experienced this powerful force will agree with Mozart, whose works were considered so great that they became the focus of a study showing a connection between listening to music and spatial-temporal ability (Neurological Research, “The Mozart Effect” February 1997). Although this study has been contested and other researchers have been unable to duplicate the findings, there is little argument that studying the performing arts is of great benefit.
Just how important is it for our children to be exposed to the arts? Of supreme importance, according to Plato. “I would teach the children music, physics, and philosophy, but the most important is music, for in the patterns of the arts are the key to all learning.” Consider the four categories of success listed by MENC as benefits received from studying music: success in society, success in school, success in developing intelligence, and success in life (MENC—The National Association for Music Education “Music Education Facts and Figures” 2002). These same benefits can be applied to the arts generally. But these are fairly broad categories, spanning all aspects of our lives. Can the study of the arts really be so essential?
In the next few days, we’ll take a look at each of these four categories of success.
Next: Success in Society
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