Eleven-year-old Ankit is diagnosed with autism and showed self-injurious and agitated disruptive behaviour. After six music interventions of listening to fast-paced classical music, he showed a decrease in baseline anxiety-related behaviour patterns. After two years, he now eagerly looks forward to music therapy sessions.
Music therapy is a process wherein music is used to resolve behavioural issues. Whether the patient needs help socially, cognitively, physically, emotionally, or developmentally, music can help achieve the required goal. It has been proved that the foetus responds to sound from the 24-26th week of pregnancy. While sounds are greatly altered as they pass from the outside world to the ear of the foetus, there is more than sufficient stimulation to be heard in the womb. Specific sounds heard by the foetus in the womb provide a strong foundation for later learning and behaviour.The cognitive neuroscience of music shows that when making music, the sensory cortex, auditory cortex, hippocampus, visual cortex, cerebellum, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, and motor cortex are all firing at once and this relates to the multi-sensory experience of making music because each of these sensory systems is tied into a specific part of the brain.
Children who undergo musical training have better verbal memory, second language pronunciation accuracy, reading ability and executive functions. Learning to play an instrument as a child may even predict academic performance and IQ in young adulthood. One of the most significant benefits today is the positive potential of classical music, especially towards children with special needs.
Source: Cure through music
