Music: The Food of the Mind

It is a well-known fact that the United States is going through very rough economic times right now, but what we don’t realize is how it is affecting our education. There are high unemployment rates and our nation is approximately 15 trillion dollars in debt, yet the government wishes to keep spending more and more money on national defense and domestic projects. This has impacted the public schools in my community by making them cut extra-curricular opportunities, supplying less bus-routes to and from school and even going to the extremes of cutting the fine arts programs altogether from schools. This is a horrible idea with serious implications. Music is a crucial element of humanity. Music stimulates the mind, supplies an emotional outlet for students, and develops social skills. Does any of that sound expendable?

I have been involved in music my entire life. I swear I came out of the womb humming Beethoven. Not really, but I have played trombone for the past ten years and have been instilled with a fiery passion for music. I was lucky enough to have had a music program at my Elementary, Middle and High Schools with great directors along the way. Needless to say, this has played a very integral role on my life and my development as an individual. Unfortunately, my former elementary school music program was cut recently and every year there are fewer musicians continuing band in high school. It makes me sad to think that people aren’t getting exposed to music at early ages and are denied the opportunity to have music in their lives.

Studies have shown that music allows the brain to function at full capacity. According to a 2006 Harris Interactive poll of high school principals, schools that have a music program have an 18 percent higher graduation rate. You may argue that schools with the funding to have a high enough budget to fund a music program are in more affluent neighborhoods and this is the true factor behind the increased graduation rate. Well I have another staggering fact for you. The Journal of Research in Music Education shows students from all around the country who take a music course score an average of 21 percent higher on the English and math portions of standardized tests than students not involved in music at all. Music is the key to increasing graduation rates in high school and overall improving the intelligence of America’s youth.

In addition, music creates an emotional outlet for angry and frustrated students. The Texas Commission on Drug and Alcohol Abuse Report found that students who participated in a band or orchestra were less likely to use drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Furthermore, "America's Performing Art: A Study of Choruses, Choral Singers, and their Impacts" found that those who participated in a choir were 32 percent more likely to engage in voluntary community service. Music has boosted the self-esteem of troubled students, reducing their chances of committing crimes and increasing the likelihood that they lend a hand to their community. I always find it relaxing to sit down and improvise in jazz band and get rid of stress through my playing. Being very involved in both my school’s different band ensembles and various honor bands I am able to see first-hand that the vast majority of band students are hard-working, friendly, and self-confident. Band is a distraction from whatever problems are going on outside of your life and a chance, much like a good piece of literature, to submerge yourself in a completely different world. It is also something to keep troubled adolescents off the street and away from gang influences. They will be introduced to a very new group of individuals that they can turn to for help and support. I know when I was dealing with a bad break-up with a girlfriend, I turned to my “band family” for advice and compassion for what I was going through. It was relieving to know I wasn’t the only one that had this experience and I was very much comforted by my trustworthy new group of friends!

Lastly, music can improve a child's social skills as well. Governor Mike Huckabee declared, "Ask a CEO what they are looking for in an employee and they say they need people who understand teamwork, people who are disciplined, people who understand the big picture. You know what they need? They need musicians." This makes sense because while being a part of an ensemble, people learn leadership skills and get the chance to be a part of something larger than themselves. Being a musician, I have learned that music is a subject that allows people to connect with others through a common interest and form relationships that will last a lifetime. I am a naturally reserved person but over time I found my niche within the school with my band family. I’m proud to be a band geek!

Music is an essential part to a person’s well-being and it pains me to see it being neglected by public schools. As President John F. Kennedy said, "The life of the arts, far from being an interruption, a distraction, in the life of a nation, is very close to the center of a nation's purpose - and is a test of the quality of a nation's civilization." Even in this economic recession we need to stand up for what we hold dear to us. If music is taken it away from us, a part of our life and soul is taken with it.