The physical, psychological, social, musical and educational benefits of singing

There are many different benefits that arise from engaging in singing activities. These apply to all ages, from childhood into adolescence and through into retirement age and beyond. With appropriately nurturing experiences, singing competency will develop. Almost without exception, everyone has the potential to sing competently and enjoy singing across the lifespan. Childhood provides a crucial opportunity to lay the foundations of a positive lifelong singing (and musical) identity.

Within the various research literatures, there are five main areas of reported benefit from singing. Benefits are physical, psychological, social, musical and educational (and often overlapping).

THE PHYSICAL BENEFITS OF SINGING RELATE TO:

1. Respiratory and cardiac function

Singing is aerobic, in that it is a form of exercise that improves the efficiency of the body’s cardiovascular system, with related benefits to overall health. Aerobic activity increases the oxygenation of the blood, which also improves overall alertness. (A study in October 2007, for example, suggested that breathing pure oxygen was more beneficial than caffeine for increasing driver alertness.) Even when seated, singing involves dynamic thoracic activity, with benefits to the underlying structure and function of the breathing mechanism. Major muscle groups are exercised in the upper body. Furthermore, aerobic activity is linked to longevity, stress reduction and general health maintenance across the lifespan. Improving airflow in the upper respiratory tract is likely to lessen opportunities for bacteria to flourish by keeping the airways open (e.g., to counter the symptoms of colds and flu). Regular singing activities also can improve lung functioning for people with respiratory illness. Overall, there are whole body physical benefits from singing (see also neurological functioning below).

2. The development of fine and gross motor control in the vocal system

The more that the vocal system is used appropriately, such as in healthy singing, the more that the underlying anatomy and physiology are likely to realise their potential in terms of growth and motor coordination. This is very important in childhood and into adolescence because it is also a time when the underlying basis for lifelong vocal identity and effective communication are established, and when healthy vocal motor behaviours can be nurtured.

3. Neurological functioning

Singing behaviour is multi-sited neurologically and networked across many different brain areas. These include the development and interaction between parts of the brain that are dedicated to aspects of music (such as pitch, rhythm, timbre), language (lyrics and speech), fine motor behaviour, visual imagery and emotion. Singers tend to have greater connections between areas of the brain than non-singers. Research has suggested that singing with someone else is not the same as singing alone, nor the same as singing with an instrument, because singing with others involves neurological areas related to human social interaction, empathy and coordination. There is also new evidence suggesting that singing can help develop the auditory attention and perception of hearing impaired (HI) children, including those with cochlear implants. Neurologically, there is a close, overlapping relationship between overt and imagined singing (such as silent rehearsal and singing to yourself).

NB. Always Learn to sing RIGHT