The association between music performance skills and cognitive improvement in a musical instrument training program for older adults

Recent studies have reported positive effects of music training on older adults’ executive functions. However, it is not completely known whether these outcomes were due to improvement in music performance skills or due to other components of training, such as social interaction and music listening. Here, we investigated the effect of a 10-week melodica training program on a group of healthy older adults in Japan and the relationship between their early music performance and improvements in executive functions. Participants were divided into an experimental and a passive control group; both completed a battery of executive function measures before and after the intervention. The experimental group also completed a music performance evaluation developed for the current study. We found a significant improvement in an executive function composite index for the intervention group as compared with the control group. Moreover, individual musical performance was the only factor to predict cognitive improvement. Our results suggest that musical instrument training has a positive impact on older adults’ cognition which is not solely attributed to social interaction or music listening. Further research should consider the potential of examining individual differences in music performance skills inside the experimental group to understand the effects of instrument training programs.